


The Girl Next Door

by Nightglider124



Category: Teen Titans (Animated Series), Teen Titans (Comics), Teen Titans - All Media Types, Titans (Comics)
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe, Angst, Drama, F/M, Fluff, Humor, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-17
Updated: 2019-02-17
Packaged: 2019-10-30 14:31:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 28,578
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17830349
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nightglider124/pseuds/Nightglider124
Summary: AU. Love thy neighbour. That's what we're all taught; to love those you inevitably live beside. Is one dark haired partygoer going to make a friend or an enemy out of his new neighbour? Multi-Chapter. Originally written in 2014. Kudos/Comments are appreciated! ^.^





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I actually tend to frequently forget that I wrote this one. I don't know why I seem to forget bc I absolutely loved it when I wrote it, if memory serves. Anyways, originally written in 2014.

Her long auburn hair billowed around her heart shaped face as she reached into the back of the large white moving truck. She exhaled noisily as she grabbed her box full of books and dragged it out of the truck. Although it was breezy, the heat completely overpowered it and the red headed girl silently regretted moving on this specific day.

She held the box of books closely to her chest and strolled back through the main door of her new apartment block. She glanced at the elevator and read the sign that was taped upon the doors that read:  _OUT OF ORDER._

Kori Anders groaned aloud and began to trudge up the stairs, mentally hating the fact that she now lived on the third floor. The main thing that made Kori continue up the stairs was the fact that her two best friends were already up there. They had offered their assistance in helping her move all of her stuff in and also setting it up so she was comfortable.

Kori sighed deeply as she reached the top of the stairs. There were two apartments on the third floor. The overall building housed about 13 apartments including the penthouse on the top floor. There was a small foyer outside number 17 and number 18. Kori held the keys for number 18 and she couldn't deny that she was curious about who her neighbour was going to be. She looked straight ahead and smiled. One of her best friends, Garfield Logan was leaning against the wall across from her. He gave her his signature grin and waved.

She closed her eyes and dropped the box of books on the floor. Her back was  _aching_. It was then that she realised she probably read more than she should. Kori looked down at the lone box and she smirked.

With a sudden sweep of her leg, Kori kicked the box all the way across the dark floor until it slowed and finally stopped in front of Garfield.

"GOAL!" Garfield cheered,

Kori placed her hands on her hips but smiled nonetheless, "Hardly, Gar. I did not even have a target." Kori pointed out,

"Wasn't your target the door?"

"I suppose-"

"Then... GOAL!"

Kori shook her head and rolled her eyes playfully at her enthusiastic friend. Suddenly, her second best friend appeared beside her with a box settled within her arms. Rachel Roth was a dark and mysterious girl to most people. She wasn't one who usually expressed thoughts or emotions publicly. Kori still smiled thinking about how incredible it was that Garfield managed to get Rachel to say yes to being his girlfriend.

They really were polar opposites and yet, they had a relationship of 3 years behind them and were still growing stronger. Kori loved the atmosphere between them because they were like a married couple who had long passed the anniversary of 50 years.

"Thank you both for helping me. I do not think I would have managed by myself." Kori stated. Rachel smiled at her and nodded. The dark girl headed towards Kori's open door although she stopped just before entering and turned to her boyfriend,

"Garfield. Be a little more useful please. Pick that box up and bring it inside." She ordered, before continuing inside.

"You can  _so_  tell that she loves me, can't you?" Garfield said, sarcastically as he followed after Rachel, kicking the box of books along in front of him.

Kori sighed and smiled. She would never understand the dynamics of their relationship but she would always respect it. She grimaced as she remembered that she had another three boxes remaining within the moving truck.

She turned back towards the stairs but failed to continue walking as she almost collided with another person. The man she had almost bumped into gently took hold of her upper arms to prevent exactly that.

"Oh! I am so very sorry..." Kori apologized. She pushed her bangs out of her eyes and looked up at him.

"That's okay. I was looking at my phone. It's totally my fault. Sorry about that..." He replied.

Kori couldn't help but stare at him. His eyes were the lightest shade of blue that Kori had ever seen. His skin was pale yet flawless. His jaw line was well defined, especially when he flashed her a lopsided grin. Kori felt her cheeks flush but she smiled back anyway. His dark ebony hair was spiked in a messy type of style but it simply made him look more attractive; Kori thought anyway.

The man in front of her took a moment to look over at her open apartment door. He smiled down at her once again, "Oh, are you the new tenant of number 18?" He asked,

"I am," Kori responded, itching to know his name,

"I'm your new neighbour. I live in number 17" He told her. Kori mentally cheered but pushed the thought away. He extended his hand to her and she shook it in a friendly manner,

"Oh, greetings... Uh..." Kori faltered, not knowing his name,

"Oh! My name is Richard Grayson but a lot of people just call me Dick. So, take your pick of what to call me,"

Kori nodded, "I am Korina Anders but everyone I know calls me Kori,"

Dick smirked and Kori wasn't sure if he was laughing at her name so she was a little defensive at first, "I... Said something amusing?" She probed, truly confused,

"No it's just... Your name is really pretty," Dick answered, bashfully smiling,

"Oh... Well, thank you..." Kori paused, "Well... I should retrieve the remainder of my things..."

"Okay... I'll see you around?"

Kori nodded and watched him as he carried on and wandered into his apartment. She felt her cheeks heat up considerably.

She knew she shouldn't think about her new neighbour in any other way than that of friendly but there was something about him... There was a quality that made her want to learn more about him.

Kori must have forgotten to move because she jumped when Garfield placed a hand on her shoulder from behind.

"Kori's daydreaming again..." Garfield told Rachel. Rachel raised an eyebrow at Kori.

"Oh! Hello friends... Yes, I believe I was doing the day dreaming... Apologies..." Kori stuttered,

"Let's go get the rest of your boxes." Garfield suggested, bounding down the stairs like a hyper child. Kori took a step forward but Rachel gently laid a hand on her shoulder.

Kori turned back around to face Rachel who looked sceptical. Rachel stared at Kori for a moment or two before tilting her head to the side.

"Did you meet your new neighbour?" Rachel smirked. Kori was going to attempt to lie but she realised that she didn't need to when talking to Rachel. Kori nodded her head enthusiastically.

"Don't forget... You can think he's attractive and everything but that's the limit." Rachel warned, remembering a certain male in Kori's life who would  _not_  appreciate her ogling her new neighbour.

Kori sighed, "I know." She replied. She also understood that she was forbidden to have anything further with her neighbour than friendship. Breaking that would cause her a world of problems that she could not even begin to comprehend...


	2. Chapter 2

The next couple of days followed on after Kori had moved in. She absolutely loved living on her own. There were no arguments, no one telling her what she should and should not do and there was nothing she wasn't allowed to do either. At home with her family, Kori forever felt like she was restricted to live how she wanted to. She had worked hard as a waitress in a coffee house to be able to gain the money to buy a place of her own.

She had always fought with her family. None of them were like her; she sometimes wondered if she was adopted. The only member of the Anders family that she got along with in the slightest was her brother, Ryan. He was a year younger than her and he understood how she felt in the idea of feeling smothered by the rules of their home.

However, in her own little apartment, she finally felt free and she felt content... Except for one thing...

Kori had liked her next door neighbour, Richard Grayson, at first but now she was biting her tongue so she didn't yell at him in anger. She had been continuously receiving his mail in her pigeon hole in the main lobby and she couldn't help but feel frustrated by it.

She had repeatedly knocked at his door and she had been polite about the situation but she was getting irritated now. She had asked him to sort the misplaced mail problem out with whoever was in charge of it but he had apparently not done so.

So, when she went down to the main lobby at around 1pm and found letters addressed to 'Mr Richard Grayson' in her mail slot, she growled and marched straight back upstairs.

She walked into the small foyer and up to Richard's door. She sucked in a breath of irritation and rapped her fist against the door loudly.

After a moment, the door opened. Dick slowly smiled at Kori and he casually leaned against the door frame. There was something about him that Kori considered to be smug and she felt it necessary to drop her polite mannerisms and glared at him coldly.

"I believe these belong to  _you._ " Kori said through gritted teeth, handing him the 3 letters in her hand.

"Oh! Thanks!" He replied, taking the letters from her with apparent unawareness at Kori's annoyance.

Kori nodded but crossed her arms over her chest, "Again... I would very much appreciate it if you could mention it to whoever it is that deals with it because it is truly quite irritating having to keep delivering the letters to you personally." Kori bit out,

"Yeah. Sure thing!" Dick chuckled, rubbing his neck, "Sorry about that,"

Kori nodded and turned with a small flip of her long red hair. She wandered away and Dick heard the slam of her door.

He bit his lip and grinned silently to himself. It was needless to say that he had taken a liking to Kori. Sure, he was yet to have a full conversation with her that didn't consist of her being pissed off at him but he thought she was absolutely beautiful and he thought that the moment he introduced himself to her. He couldn't exactly pinpoint a specific trait of hers that was already obvious to him. He knew he liked her voice and her perfume heavy scent but what really captured his attention were her eyes. They were deep pools of emerald green with lighter and darker flecks imbedded within them, giving them an extraordinary glow against the light. She was breathtaking and he couldn't deny it even if he wanted to.

Dick knew he was annoying her but he had decided to take Wally's advice. He wanted Kori to notice him and Wally had told him that the way to do just that was to annoy her purposely and then she would  _have_  to talk to him because she would have to express her anger with his antics.

He wasn't certain on the idea but he felt that Kori would be the type of girl who didn't notice guys who had a thing for her that simply so he decided... Irritating his neighbour was the way forward.

Every time Dick replayed Wally's advice and his plan to get Kori to notice him, he groaned at the obvious thought that it could never work.

Dick sighed and slid back inside, closing the door behind him.

The chilly night time breeze made Kori shudder as she fumbled for the keys to JaVaVu. Her boss had told her to lock up once she had finished cleaning the tables and counters in the coffee shop. She yawned as she turned the key in the lock and jiggled the handle, making sure it was  _really_  locked. Kori retracted the keys and placed them back into her bag.

She rubbed her eyes and blinked a few times. Kori hadn't exactly planned on being so very tired as she still aimed to eat and have a shower when she got home. The blustery wind swirled around her and caused her to shiver. She pulled up the collar of her coat and began walking down the street. It was dark and that always caused her to feel rather uncomfortable. Gotham could be a  **very**  dangerous place at night if you ran into the wrong kind of people.

Kori sighed as she caught sight of her apartment block after walking for about 10 minutes. She hurried her steps so she could get home quicker and be engulfed within the warmth of her apartment.

Her steps slowed slightly as she reached the lobby door. She wandered in and shook her head to relieve herself of the hauntingly cold temperature that she felt. She hated the nights; they were always freezing, no matter what the season was.

Kori ran a hand through her long gorgeous hair as she daintily stepped up the stairs to get into her apartment. She allowed her shoulders to slump with relief as she reached her own door and fished around in her bag for her keys.

She found them and let herself in, throwing her bag and coat onto the sofa nonchalantly as the door banged shut behind her. She kicked off her shoes and fell onto her back onto the sofa. She exhaled noisily and felt her eyes getting heavier but Kori refused to let herself fall asleep.

She groaned and pushed herself up onto her feet again. She removed the hair band from her hair and shook it free, letting her tamed hair cascade down her back.

Kori strolled into the bathroom, briefly stopping by the towel cupboard to grab a body sized towel for herself. She tugged at the back of her dress and finally pulled the zip of her uniform dress all the way down. She shrugged out of her uniform and let it fall to the ground.

She stretched her arms above her head to get rid of the tired feeling that she was cursed with tonight. Kori removed her underwear and her bra and threw them into the corner along with her uniform.

Finally, Kori smiled. She stepped into the shower and moaned with pleasure as the spray of warm water drenched her hair and trickled over her golden skin.

She wasn't sure exactly why but Kori had always loved showers and bathes. She loved to feel as clean as possible at all times.

After about 20 minutes, Kori exited the bathroom with a white towel wrapped tightly around her body. The top of the towel cut across her chest and was short in length against her legs too. Her hair was damp but she found it irritating having to put it up in a towel too.

She left her damp auburn hair against her right shoulder. Kori whistled cheerfully as she wandered out of the bathroom. She sighed and smiled; she was happy that she was moving closer towards her goal of crawling into bed for the night.

She was about to go into her room and get changed into her pyjamas but there was a sudden knock at her door.

Kori raised an eyebrow but strolled over to her door anyway. She opened it and the confusion within her rose a little more.

"I... I did not order a food delivery..." Kori told the man,

He had a sleepy expression as he shrugged, "Well... I got told to deliver it to number 18."

"And may I ask the name of the customer?"

"Some guy called Dick,"

Kori involuntarily gritted her teeth and clenched her fist.

"Do I look like a man to you!?" She barked.

The young delivery guy smirked and glanced at her chest. Kori gasped and blushed furiously. She growled and roughly pushed past him. She used her hand to signal for him to follow her.

She marched over to Dick's door and turned to the young, bored delivery boy,

"This is the place in which you are looking for." Kori stated, banging her fist against Dick's door. She tapped her foot impatiently and crossed her arms over her chest in a huff.

Dick opened the door and smiled softly down at Kori, "Hey Kori and... Guy?" Dick trailed off, confused by what he was seeing,

"I believe you told the Chinese delivery service the  _wrong_  apartment number." Kori said in a low tone to prevent herself from yelling in frustration,

Dick held a shocked expression, "Oh? My bad. Sorry about that, Kori." Dick answered, a smirk fighting to show.

The delivery boy was apparently tired of chasing up the recipient. He cleared his throat, "Here, sir. You are Dick, yeah? You paid via card?" He checked,

"Yup, that's me. Thanks man." Dick replied, taking the food from him. The boy nodded and left quickly.

Kori rolled her eyes in an irritated manner and exhaled noisily. She turned away and took one step before she heard Dick's voice. Part of her told her to turn back around and smack him in the face but she resisted.

"Did you want some noodles, Kori?" He asked, nonchalantly. Kori turned back around to face him and glared at him.

 _Was he truly serious?_  Kori thought,  _I wonder if he is being so annoying on purpose. Ugh._

"No thank you." Kori returned, coldly, "Having the young delivery boy think I was a male is enough for me tonight."

Dick smirked and cast a glance towards Kori's just barely covered assets.

"I don't know how he could have thought that..." Dick whispered in a husky yet playful voice.

Kori's eyes widened and she mirrored the gasp and blush from when the delivery boy had done the same. She growled and crossed her arms tighter over her chest,

"Goodnight Mr Grayson." Kori bit out, turning away once again. Her hair flipped over her shoulder as she turned and lightly sprayed Dick as her hair was still wet.

She marched back towards her own door and Dick grinned but cringed as he heard her door open and slam shut.

He gave into a light chuckle. As much as he wanted to actually get to know Kori and get her to like him on some level, he was having a lot of fun acting like a child with her.

He sighed. He was curious as to whether the 'annoying neighbour' routine of Wally's was actually going to work. He honestly wasn't aiming to get Kori to  _hate_  him; on the contrary, he really wanted her to like him but he was beginning to question whether he was going the right way about it.

Dick felt frustrated at not being able to understand what it was about Kori that caused him to like her so much. In all seriousness, he had never even spoken to her for more than 2 minutes. He didn't understand how he could like a girl that he practically knew nothing about. He shook his head and wandered back inside with his Chinese food whilst trying to get the image of Kori in a towel out of his head. He smirked as he played it back in his head. She was adorable...  _Damn it_...


	3. Chapter 3

The bright sunlight trickled through the gaps in the blinds protecting Kori's window. It was 7am and it was sunny. Usually, that would not work in helping people to have more positive attitudes for their day but it was a different case with Kori. Not only was the sun shining but today was Friday; Kori's favourite day. She didn't stop working over the weekend but it was reduced hours so she had a lot more free time to do whatever she wanted to do.

Kori gulped down the rest of her glass of water and placed it in the sink. She decided that she would wash it up when she returned home. With an inhale of breath, she picked up her coat and shrugged herself into it. Then, she grabbed her bag and pushed it up onto her shoulder.

With that, she left her apartment and locked it. She glanced at Dick's door as she passed and she grimaced. Although he was  _very_  irritating as a neighbour, Kori couldn't help but feel attracted to him. He was somewhat playful with a hint of masculine mystery which made Kori curious about him. She rolled her eyes at her girly thoughts.

She made her way downstairs and buttoned up her coat as she stepped outside. The sun was beaming down but it was bitterly cold on account of how early it was.

Kori sighed and shoved her hands into her coat pockets. She began walking towards her work place with her mind racing with many different events and things she had to do over the weekend.

She was in deep thought and almost completely forgot to look both ways as she crossed through the car park outside of the apartment block.

Suddenly, Kori practically jumped out of her skin as she was almost hit by a car. She gasped and physically leapt away from the car. She placed a hand against her chest to calm herself a little. Kori glared up at the driver and her expression did not waver in the slightest as she noticed who the driver was.

Dick Grayson's facial expression was scrunched up as he physically cringed at another blunder with Kori. He could see clearly as Kori huffed. He rubbed the back of his neck and smiled sheepishly at her through the front windscreen. She apparently was not amused.

Kori growled to herself and stomped the rest of the way until she reached JaVaVu. She stepped inside and noticed Rachel was already switching the coffee machines on. Kori angrily shrugged her coat off of her body and placed it in the back along with her bag.

She wandered back to the counter whilst she was tying her small white apron around her waist. Rachel turned to her and raised an eyebrow,

"I know you hate working but Jheez, even I look less pissed off than you Kori." Rachel stated,

"It is not work." Kori replied,

"Then what?"

"My idiotic new neighbour!" Kori barked, slamming a cup down against the counter which gained the attention of a few customers,

"Oh? I thought you said he was good looking and nice?" Rachel reminded her,

"Yes well... Apparently looks are not everything. Ugh! He is so irritating!"

"Are you sure you don't just kinda like him?

"Wh-What?" Kori babbled, feeling a blush creeping up on her, "Pft. No!"

Rachel rolled her eyes, clearly not convinced, "So, what has he been doing to annoy you?" She queried,

"First of all, his mail continuously got placed in my mail slot within the lobby and I told him each time and he did nothing about it. Then, he ordered Chinese food and it was delivered to my apartment instead of his on purpose!"

"How do you know it was on purpose?"

"Because the delivery man even told me that the delivery had been made out to apartment 18. Forgive me, but I am quite certain that he could not truly mistake his door number with mine."

"Yeah... No, I agree with you on that part."

"And then, this morning, he almost hit me with his car! Then he infuriated me further by smiling at me! Oh, he is so frustrating!"

"Kori, I have a theory. Have you ever thought that he might be doing all those things to annoy you because he wants to get your attention? Maybe he likes you."

"I do not see how he could; he does not know me."

"That doesn't mean anything. Think of Garfield and I. When we first met, he would not leave me alone and he was constantly annoying me until I talked to him."

"Well... If that is what he is doing; he is going the wrong way about it indeed!" Kori huffed, crossing her arms over her chest. Rachel smirked and shook her head. She walked away from Kori to get another bag of coffee beans from the back.

Kori sighed and relaxed a little. She tapped her delicate fingertips against the smooth counter. She bit her lip as she considered Rachel's theory a little more.

Involuntarily, she quirked a small smile at the idea of Dick liking her. She couldn't deny that he was  _very_  attractive and Rachel's reference to her own relationship with Garfield did make Kori consider it further.

The red headed girl shook her head and looked up. She smiled at the customer in front of her and prepared herself for the next couple of hours consisting of serving coffee to people and cleaning tables.

Kori groaned as she threw open the door to her apartment. She was happy that her shift at work had ended but she was exhausted. She completed her routine of throwing her coat and bag onto the sofa and kicking her shoes off. Slowly, she trudged into her bedroom and collapsed with a yawn onto her bed. Her eyes felt heavy and she was slowly being dragged into a calm and peaceful world by the Sandman.

She was about 1 minute away from sleep when suddenly, music blared through the walls. Kori gritted her teeth and her eyes opened immediately. She growled and screamed into her sheets.

Kori pushed herself up onto her feet with force and stumbled towards her door. She angrily threw the door open and stormed out.

She stopped outside of Dick's door and furiously banged her fist against it as hard as she could. She prepared herself to yell at the dark haired man but her frustrations melted away and she became nervous as he opened the door.

Dick breathed heavily as he leaned against the doorframe. He ran a hand through his damp hair. What really got Kori staring was the fact that he was shirtless and glistening with sweat with a white towel slung over his shoulder. His body was impressive. His chest was chiselled and his abs were solid. Kori found it strange that she had an urge to rest a hand against his toned muscles.

Kori realised that she had been staring and she shook her head in an attempt to stop herself from continuing to stare at his defined body. She blushed a deep red and she knew he had noticed because he flashed her one of his familiar lopsided grins,

"Oh, hey Kori. Is something wrong?" He puffed, shoving a hand into a pocket of his sweat pants.

"Uh... Can you please turn your music down?" Kori paused, allowing her glance to sweep across his form once more before looking at his face, "I have had the long day at work and I simply wish to sleep. So, keep it down."

Dick shuffled like a little boy who had been told off, "Oh right... Sorry... When I work out, I forget. Of course I'll turn it down." He explained.

Kori exhaled a breath and nodded. She gulped as her eyes raked over his form one final time without her permission. She was pretty sure her blush had deepened and she finally tore herself away from him. She quickly re-entered her own apartment and shut the door behind her.

Dick smirked and turned back into his own apartment too. He honestly couldn't make out what it was that made him so attracted to her but here he was, feeling as light as air simply because her voice had swam through his ears. His heart was already racing due to lifting weights but he knew the difference between exercise adrenaline and adrenaline that people got when they had a 'crush' on someone. He cringed at the word; thinking about how kid like that was.

Even as the ebony haired guy returned to working out, the smirk on his face which was caused by Kori, would not vanish... Not that he minded smiling about the thought of his neighbour...


	4. Chapter 4

Kori hummed a soft tune to herself as she swirled her paintbrush within the jar of water placed on the table beside her. The purple paint slowly disintegrated and dissolved within the clear water, making it turn a lighter shade. She continued with tapping her paintbrush against the edge of the jar to discard excess water.

She lifted the paintbrush and dipped it into a small drop of red paint. Once she had a fair amount upon the brush she carefully lifted it towards her in progress canvas.

Silence echoed around her for a moment. She inhaled deeply. She had to be precise and careful about the next part. The bits in which she was painting were small and needed attention as they were drawn with intricate detail.

Just as Kori was about to touch the canvas with her brush, a loud boom of music sounded.

Kori gasped and practically fell off of her stool. She sighed as the loudness of the music caused her canvas to vibrate. She would never be able to concentrate with that <i>noise</i> blaring.

She grabbed a piece of tissue and rubbed the remainder of paint off of the paintbrush. She closed the box which contained all of her paint pots and placed it upon the table beside her jar of water.

Kori stood up and brushed herself down. She rolled her eyes and sighed as she realised that she would always have to deal with Dick being an annoying neighbour unless she chose to move away from the apartment block...

 

A knock at the door was what brought her out of her reverie. She raised an eyebrow and waited a moment before wandering towards the door. She wondered who on Earth it could be. For a moment she considered it would be an inebriated fool needing to use her bathroom or something.

Kori groaned and opened the door, not really wanting to deal with anyone. She narrowed her eyes at the man who was leaning against the door frame, cooly.

She exhaled noisily and crossed her arms over her chest, “Wonderful... As if you playing loud music was not enough to irritate me.” She complained, eyeing him carefully.

Dick smiled and chuckled nervously. He rubbed the back of his neck and Kori could sense he was beginning to show her his <i>true</i> colours. She stepped closer to him, still holding her questioning stare.

He visibly gulped and Kori noticed his cheeks turned a light shade of pink.

“Sorry... I uh... Guess I’m not in the adult zone yet.” Dick stuttered.

Kori shuffled on the sport and sighed. She didn’t mean to sound rude but she was getting tired of just standing there. Dick cleared his throat, apparently preparing himself to speak again,

“Look... I don’t want to be enemies, Kori... As a matter of fact, I want to be as far away from that as possible. Honestly... I came over to ask if you maybe wanted to join the party?” He explained.

Kori stared at him for a moment. Her mouth hung open slightly as she was truly shocked by his offer. It was the most non annoying thing her neighbour had done so far. Kori’s cheeks tinted pink as she came to realise that she had not yet replied to him.

“Oh... I... I do not think I should...” Kori trailed off, rubbing her arm. She wasn’t sure if she should go because she knew a certain guy in her life might have a problem with her becoming close friends with her neighbour. She was conflicted because her irritation and dislike for Dick was slowly melting away and she <i>really</i> did want to get to know him better.

“Please? I think you’ll have a lot of fun and sides, you can invite some of your friends too if you want...” Dick informed her.

Kori tilted her head from side to side as she considered his offer further. She looked up and her emerald eyes melded with his crystal blue eyes. Her decision was slowly becoming clearer to her.

“C’monnnn. You know you want tooooo.” Dick chuckled.

Kori raised her delicate fingertips to her lips and giggled softly. She sighed and gave into a smirk, “I suppose attending for a short while would not hurt.” She admitted.

Dick grinned, “Awesome! C’mon...” Dick urged but Kori stopped short,

“I cannot go into a party dressed in the tank top and sweat pants...” She informed him,

“Then change. I’ll wait here for you,” Dick vowed, giving her a soft smile. Kori eyed him carefully. She had to admit she liked the way he was acting now but she was torn between which personality was truly his. He was quite the mystery.

Kori nodded and headed back inside of her own apartment. While she was considering what to wear, she texted Rachel and Garfield about the event happening next door and told them to come too.

They were on their way when Kori had picked out a simple grey skater dress with casual black flats. She glanced over her appearance once she had changed and agreed with herself that she looked alright.

Kori had actually expected Dick to have gone back to the party but she was proved wrong as she opened her door.

He was still standing with his back against the wall, whistling a small tune while he waited. Dick turned his head to look at her and the familiar lopsided grin appeared once again.

“Hey again,” He greeted, letting his eyes rake over her form, tastefully.

“Greetings,” Kori replied, “I believe I am ready now,”

“Well I’d say so. You look really great...” Dick stated, feeling a blush creep across his cheeks. Kori giggled and felt herself relax a little more.

Dick gently touched the small of her back to urge her into continuing towards his apartment.

Kori immediately sucked in a breath as the overwhelming scent of alcohol and sweating young adults filled her nostrils. She had never been much of a ‘party girl’ but she believed in at least trying to like such events.

The realisation of only knowing Dick out of all of the people in his apartment, hit her as he gently pushed her towards the kitchen.

Kori had not known Dick very long but at that moment, she felt it necessary to remain close to him. She leaned against him and felt her cheeks heat up as she could feel his strong torso.

She looked up at him and was not surprised to receive a lopsided grin in return. Kori couldn’t help but stare into his deep blue eyes. She really could sense a lovely person within him and she wanted to get to know that version of him.

“Let’s get you a drink.” Dick yelled, earning a nod from Kori. He gently took her hand within his own and led her into the kitchen. She blushed from the sudden contact but understood that he simply didn’t want her to get lost in the crowd.

 

Once they had made it to the kitchen, Dick released her hand and rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

“Sorry about that.” He apologised,

“It is quite alright. It would hardly be a party if there were next to no people.” Kori replied, giving him a soft smile.

He returned the smile and pointed to his array of assorted drinks, “Alcoholic or soft drink?” He offered, using his hand to signal the drinks in a similar way to a magicians assistant. Kori giggled.

“Soft drink, please.” She answered,

“Not a fan of alcohol?” Dick wondered, reaching for a can of soda and a clear glass. He emptied the soda into the glass and passed it to Kori.

“I rarely drink it. I believe in the philosophy of not letting the beverage run my life. For instance, I do not believe in becoming inebriated to simply enjoy myself at various events.” Kori returned.

Dick smiled.

“What?” Kori giggled,

“Nothing; it’s just... That’s probably the smartest thing I’ve ever heard.” He replied.

Kori grinned and bowed her head slightly, signalling her thanks for the compliment.

 

Suddenly, two figures practically fell into the kitchen. Kori smirked as she recognised them immediately,

“Friends!” Kori squeaked, jumping off the stool she was sat upon. Rachel and Garfield turned to her with apparent smiles of relief.

“That was like a maze.” Rachel groaned, leaning against the counter.

“Seriously! Dude, how many people do you know!?” Garfield scoffed, turning to Dick.

 

Kori shook her head at the two of them; they were always so very forward with how they felt of what they thought.

“Apologies, Richard...” Kori breathed, eyeing her friends. Dick chuckled,

“No worries!” He returned. He smiled at Garfield and shrugged, “Apparently, I know a lot of people.”

“Damn straight you do, man!” Garfield laughed. Kori allowed herself to smile absentmindedly.

“Richard Grayson, these are my two best friends, Garfield Logan and Rachel Roth.” Kori introduced,

“Nice to meet you guys,” Dick greeted, flashing them both a friendly smile. The two of them nodded to him,

“You too,” Rachel stated, grabbing a soda can for herself. Kori mentally sighed; they were too comfortable sometimes.

“Hey, I want you guys to meet my good friends. C’mon.” Dick informed them. He headed out the kitchen door and grabbed Kori’s hand once again in order to lead her to his desired destination.

She took the time to consider how soft his touch was. Kori was aware that nothing beyond friendship was in the cards for them but she could still think about it.

 

Dick halted before a group of people who were around the same age as them.

“Hey man! I haven’t seen you since the beginning of the party! I thought you died!” a red headed male exclaimed.

Dick chuckled, “Hey guys. I want you to meet my neighbour, Kori Anders and her two friends, Rachel Roth and Garfield Logan.” He shouted.

The group of people all smiled in a friendly manner, murmured forms of greetings and waved.

“And here we have, Wally West, Jenny Ashbrook, Vic Stone and Karen Beecher.” Dick said, pointing to them accordingly. Kori favoured all of them with a bright smile.

 

Wally was either a very enthusiastic guy or he was way past being ‘tipsy’. His eyes were a shockingly bright shade of green with a contrast of bright red messily spiked hair. He seemed like the type of happy-go-lucky guy that everyone was happy to have in their life.

Jenny stood beside him. She had bright pink hair with what Kori could only assume were matching pink contact lenses. Her overall appearance was electrifying to say the least. Wally’s arm was around her waist so she could only assume that they were a couple. By the expression on Jenny’s face, Kori knew she was correct about her assumption. The two of them reminded Kori of Rachel and Garfield. Rachel and Jenny could probably talk endlessly about their idiotic boyfriends. Kori smirked at that thought.

Kori looked further and her eyes rested on another guy. Victor or as Dick had shortened it; Vic. He was big and broad yet he seemed like the most harmless guy you could ever meet. He had dark skin and dark cobalt eyes.

Karen leaned on a table beside Vic. Kori didn’t need to ask if they were a couple. Their body language and attitude towards each other proved they were an item indeed. Karen had jet black hair with dark skin and chocolate brown eyes with a hint of green within them. She seemed to be loud and expressive in her movements. Kori smiled. She had a feeling she would get along well with Karen.

 

After about half an hour of speaking to the newfound group of friends, Kori felt slightly lightheaded. She gulped and gripped a seat nearby to steady herself.

She was too hot and she knew that she would probably pass out if she didn’t get fresh air soon.

Kori gently touched her head and staggered away from the group who were emerged in all sorts of conversations.

Dick noticed Kori wandering away and became concerned for her. She looked unwell so he followed closely behind her to make sure nothing bad happened to her.

Kori reached the small balcony area of Dick’s apartment and pushed open the double doors. She closed her eyes and deeply inhaled the cool fresh air of the night. She softly smiled at the light breeze against her flushed face. She sighed.

“Are you okay, Kori?” Dick asked, causing her to jump slightly and open her eyes immediately. She turned a little to see him close the double doors before joining her on the small balcony.

Kori gave him a smile, “I am...” She nodded, “I simply do not attend parties very often so I am not used to the closeness...”

“You felt lightheaded?” Dick checked,

“I am feeling the okay now that I have had the fresh air...” Kori replied,

“I don’t imagine you to be the party type of 21 year old if I’m completely honest.”

“What gives me away?”

“I don’t know... It’s not in a bad way or anything. It’s kinda like you know what you want... Like you’re determined and serious...”

“And boring.”

Dick smiled, “I didn’t say that. Sides, you don’t seem very boring at all.”

Kori mirrored his grin, “Well, thank you... I sometimes must be very serious especially when it comes to matters involving my boyfriend,” She admitted, rolling her eyes.

Dick felt his heart drop a little at one specific word, “Boyfriend?” He asked, hoping he had heard her wrong.

Kori stared at the moon and nodded slowly, “His name is Xavier... He is far from childish but sometimes he can become paranoid and fearful with certain things so I must be serious in order to reassure him...” She explained,

“Ah... I see...” Dick said, quietly. He had truly hoped that Kori would be single. He had desperately wanted to get to know her with hopes of... more with her. It sounded crazy in his head; he had only known Kori for a week and a half but he felt like there was something about her that he couldn’t quite put into words.

“I am confused...” Kori admitted after a moment of silence passed,

“About what?” Dick wondered,

“Well... You are so nice now... Tell me, why have you been trying to irritate me so much since I moved in next door?” Kori blurted, curiosity getting the better of her.

Dick blushed and became rather sheepish. Kori smirked as he rubbed the back of his neck and chuckled nervously, “Uh... Honestly, I wanted to get to know you since the day you moved in and I did want to be normal and stuff but Wally told me that you would only notice me... If I was a terrible neighbour...”

Although Kori had a boyfriend, she couldn’t deny the butterflies that she felt within her stomach. She felt flattered at the truth behind his antics.

“That is silly.” Kori giggled, “I believed you to be very nice on the first day that we met and besides, of course I noticed you! You are my neighbour after all...”

Dick grinned and perked up a little at her words. He considered other things that they could talk about and he suddenly thought of something that he had been meaning to ask her about, “So... I noticed your work uniform the other morning... Which coffee shop do you work at?” He asked, politely,

Kori brushed a stray piece of red hair behind her ear, “Do you know JaVaVu down the street?” Kori queried,

“Yeah! I love it there!”

“I have never seen you in there...”

“I know. My assistant usually runs in for me.”

Kori raised an eyebrow and smirked, “Your assistant?”

“Yeah... Heh... Well, I work at Wayne Enterprises and I can get really busy so an assistant was hired for me...”

“You are only 22 years old... May I ask how you acquired such skills to work at such a large company?”

“Well... My father is Bruce Wayne... So, y’know...”

“I see... I did not know that Bruce Wayne had children...”

“There’s three of us. All boys and Bruce adopted us so...”

“You are adopted?”

“Yup. He adopted me when I was nine years old after I... Uh... I lost my parents...”

Kori felt a pang of hurt for him. Sure, she had never got along well with her parents but she would still be devastated if they were dead; it prevents any problems from ever getting fixed.

She hesitantly reached a hand out and touched his arm. He glanced at her with a small smile.

“You have my condolences...” Kori told him,

“Thanks...” He inhaled and shook his head to relieve his head of that memory, “Maybe I can tell you more about that depressing day another time.”

Dick smiled and shrugged the weight of it that he had always carried, off. Kori smiled but it was half intended to let Dick know that she was here for him.

“So, what is your family like?” Dick quizzed.

Kori shifted a little but sighed, “I do not get along with my Father or Mother very much... At all, actually... So, I saved enough money from working at JaVaVu and moved out.”

Dick nodded to show that he was listening and that he understood what she was saying. He smirked, “Well... You’re <i>definitely</i> better than the last tenant.” He informed her,

“Oh?” Kori prompted him to continue. She blushed a light pink as he leaned in closer to her. He was so close that she could make out the darker and lighter flecks of blue within his perfect eyes.

“Yeah...” He whispered, pausing for apparent dramatic effect, “She was a psycho and owned like a hundred cats...”

 

Kori burst out laughing at what he had told her. Dick smiled and stared at her while she giggled. He was pretty sure that he had just found his new favourite sound...

 


	5. Chapter 5

The bright rays of sunlight streamed through the large windows of JaVaVu and illuminated everything within the coffee house. The place always looked more upbeat when the sun shone through the windows; even the employees would cheer up in that situation.

Kori hummed a little tune as she began making up a fresh pot of coffee. She poured the coffee granules into the machine and added the water before pressing a sequence of buttons. The red headed girl turned back around to face the counter.

She grabbed a blue cloth and wet it slightly. She squeezed the water out of it so that it didn’t drip like crazy. Kori continued to hum as she started to clean the counter top.

Rachel glanced at Kori and raised an eyebrow, curious of her happy mood. Sure, Kori was usually very cheerful but today she seemed... more cheerful that normal.

The dark haired girl stopped stacking muffins in the small glass container and rested a hand on her hip. She decided to ask her something straight out,

“So, do you have a crush on him now or something?” She blurted, smirking at the fact she had a pretty good idea what the truth was,

Kori turned to look at Rachel. She blushed a deep red and raised an eyebrow,

“Wh- What?” Kori stammered,

“Dick. Do you like him?” Rachel repeated in simpler terms,

“Of course not...” Kori lied,

“Liar... All I’m saying is that you seem to like him... A lot...”

Kori rolled her eyes, “He is nice as a friend only. Besides, you seem to be forgetting about my boyfriend...”

“Yes, but it would be so much better if you broke up with Xavier and dated Dick instead,”

“Rachel... Please.”

“I’m serious! You guys talked for like 3 hours last night. If that isn’t some kind of connection then I don’t know what is...”

Kori sighed and shook her head at Rachel’s newfound enthusiasm. Rachel smirked,

“Well... I’m pretty sure that Dick really likes you...” She informed Kori,

“What? That is ridiculous. We are merely friends.” Kori responded, holding hope in her heart that he did have feelings for her in some way.

 

Rachel shrugged and turned back towards the glass muffin case. As she turned, she caught sight of a familiar face coming through the double doors. She grinned.

She nudged Kori lightly, “You must be really close friends then...” Rachel whispered.

Kori raised her head and gave Rachel a confused look. The mysterious girl nodded in the direction of the entrance, which Kori followed.

 

Kori felt her breath catch a little in her throat as Dick wandered closer. He casually leaned against the edge of the counter and gave her a lopsided grin,

“Hey again,” He said, the smile never wavering,

“Greetings,” Kori returned, “Is your assistant not visiting in your place today?”

“Nope. I decided to start picking up my own stuff from here from now on... Assuming that you and I are friends now?”

“I believe we are...”

“Good.”

Kori smiled and tilted her head to the side for a moment, “So... What can I get for you, sir?” She asked, politely,

Dick straightened up as if he were an unknown customer. He playfully rubbed his chin and gazed up at the menu board,

“Could I get a cappuccino and a plain bagel please, Kori?” He queried, flashing her a grin. Kori giggled and nodded.  She quickly scribbled his order down and ripped the piece of paper from the notepad.

Kori turned away and set about making up his hot beverage. Rachel watched Dick carefully from the end of the counter. She smiled faintly.

She stared at Dick as he sweetly stared at Kori. When him and Kori spoke to each other, he always looked directly into her eyes as he listened carefully to every word she said. Even when Kori had turned away, his eyes didn’t fall to that typically expected of a man; his eyes rested on all of her. Her whole form. It seemed as if he were analysing her movements with intricate precision.

Rachel had never been a mushy type of person but it made her supposed ice cold heart thaw a little at seeing someone take notice of her best friend. Of course, men always took notice and interest in Kori but never for the right reasons. Usually, guys had been more interested in her body than her personality, including her current boyfriend. However, it ran deeper than that.

The dark haired girl detested Xavier Jones immensely. He was the first guy who supposedly fell in love with Kori for both her appearance and her personality yet Rachel was far from convinced. She saw Xavier for what he <i>really</i> was. He was manipulative, possessive and deceiving. He fooled those around him by acting like the perfect boyfriend to Kori but behind closed doors he was everything but.

Kori and Xavier constantly fought. It was pretty much every evening that they would clash and it would usually be Kori who ended up apologizing even though she was more often than not, in the right.

Rachel noticed that her fist was clenched upon the counter. She relaxed her hand and glanced at Dick again who was still staring at the back of Kori’s head with a small smile. Rachel smiled a little more. She wanted Kori to realise that she and Dick shared a connection of sorts. They got along so well and Rachel knew Kori had a twist of feelings for Dick; despite her words of denial. The dark girl sighed and shrugged to herself, hoping that Kori would figure things out for herself.

 

Kori turned back around to face Dick with a bright smile. She handed him a small brown paper bag with the JaVaVu logo on it which contained his bagel and she also handed him his finished cappuccino.

Dick stared at her while she repeated his completed order to him. He just couldn’t help but stare. She was so beautiful; she almost didn’t seem real to him. Her eyes were the perfect shade of green and her hair was the best shade of red; it wasn’t bright like it had been continuously dyed but natural with a subtle shine to it.

He shook his head to bring himself out of his personal reverie, “Thanks Kori. Here’s the money...” Dick trailed off as he grabbed $10 from his pocket and gave it to Kori.

Kori nodded and worked out the change for him before giving it to him. She smiled at him as she expected him to get up and leave but he did not. Kori shifted her eyes a little, uncertain of why he remained seated.

“Do you not have to return to work?” Kori wondered, raising an eyebrow,

“I’m on lunch,” He paused as he began unwrapping his bagel, “Mind if I spend it here talking to you?”

Kori stayed silent for a moment before she gave him a small smile which was accompanied by a faint blush against her cheeks, “Of course I do not mind,” She replied, earning a grin from him in response. Rachel smirked in the corner and she wiped a cup dry and placed it back in its normal place.

 

 

Kori giggled at the story Dick was telling her about a time when Wally had gotten so drunk and had arrived at Dick’s house with a puppy in his arms and a pirate hat upon his head. Dick shook his head as he laughed,

“I couldn’t believe it. That was the worst he’s ever been. At the time, it was so irritating but now that I look back on it; it was hilarious,” Dick chuckled,

“Where did he even find a puppy at 3am!?” Kori squeaked, lifting a hand in an attempt to cool her face. Her face always heated up when she was laughing a lot.

“I have no idea! He still can’t even remember where he got it from!” Dick returned, cracking up all over again.

 

Kori sighed as the laughter died down but she suddenly caught sight of the clock upon the wall. The heat of her face cooled immediately and she felt her heart drop suddenly at the realisation of something on Dick’s behalf,

“Uh... Richard?” Kori started,

“Yeah?” He answered,

“Were you not supposed to go back to work 30 minutes ago?”

“Crap!”

Dick freaked out and practically fell off of the stool he had been sitting on. Kori took a step forward so that her stomach pressed against the edge of the counter. She looked over with a concerned expression and made sure he was alright.

“Apologies-” Kori began, feeling entirely at fault,

“Kori, it was not your fault.” Dick told her, flashing her a friendly smile, “Honestly. It was completely my fault... I’ll catch up with you later?”

Kori nodded instantly,

“Well, y’know... Unless Bruce kills me first.” He joked.

Kori giggled as she watched him stumble and sprint out of the double doors. She tilted her head as her laughter ceased. All that was left upon her lips was a ghost of a smile.

Rachel grinned and nudged Kori as she passed her, causing the red head to turn and look at her,

“Oh yeah... From that it was so obvious that you don’t like him at all...” She said sarcastically before carrying on going and taking the garbage out.

Kori’s words of protest and denial died on her tongue and she sighed instead. She knew Rachel was partially right. She wasn’t in love with him; how could she be? She had only known him for nearly 2 weeks.

She was aware that she felt something but she wasn’t sure if it was a simple crush or not. She had a boyfriend and that was what she <i>had</i> to keep in mind. She knew how unstable and paranoid Xavier could become; she didn’t even want to tell him about the fact her new neighbour was a guy.

He was very anxious when it came to Kori socialising with other guys and the way in which she and Dick got along would not sit well with him <b>at all</b>.


	6. Chapter 6

Dick ran a hand through his dark hair and yawned as he stepped into his room. He never knew why but he always felt drowsy after having showers. He stretched his arms above his head as he looked for a clean wife beater and a clean pair of sweats within his wardrobe.

He located some clothing and set it upon his bed whilst he dried himself off with his white towel. He shrugged himself into his fresh clothes and wandered back into the main room of his apartment.

Suddenly, he heard an odd high pitched type of cry. He was curious as to what it was. He knew he wouldn't be able to hear a cat or some form of animal considering how high his floor was.

He quietly stepped over to his front door and pressed his ear to it in an attempt to hear the cry again.

His expression turned sad as he came to the realisation that it was a girl sobbing somewhat uncontrollably and he felt worse as he had a good idea as to who it was.

As Dick slowly pulled his front door open, he saw a flash of Kori as she marched over to her own front door. He only saw her for a moment but it was all he needed to notice her red, puffy eyes and tear stained face.

He walked out slightly but hung back and leaned against the wall. He crossed his arms and furrowed his eyebrows as he listened to her unmanageable crying. He poked his head around the wall a little and saw her struggling with her bag. She dug her hand through the bag in a clear attempt to find her keys. After a moment, Kori developed a moment of anger and threw her bag down at the ground whilst a strained weep escaped her lips.

Kori gave into a shaky sigh and placed a hand against her forehead and used her other hand to lean against her front door.

Dick gulped, not overly confident in how to help her but he began to walk towards her anyway. He slowly reached a comforting hand out and lightly touched her shoulder.  
Kori immediately flinched but turned her head to see who it was who had touched her.

"Oh..." Kori stuttered, rubbing her eyes to try and conceal her emotions, "Greetings Richard..."

"Kori... Are you alright?" He asked, displaying his concern for her wellbeing,

Kori's fake smile vanished and she closed her eyes and sighed, "I simply had a small argument with my boyfriend is all..." She admitted,

"D'you feel like hanging out for a while? To get your mind off of it?" Dick offered, giving her a smile.

Kori bit her lip as she considered his proposal. After a moment, she nodded, "Thank you..." She answered, softly. Dick crouched down and retrieved her bag. He stood and passed it to her with a gentle smile. Kori's expression softened and she visibly relaxed.

Dick motioned for her to go into his apartment and she giggled lightly. Kori allowed her eyes to scan his apartment and she smirked a little. It was a sweet apartment. It seemed very homely and quite cosy too. The lamp was lowly lit, giving the room a relaxed atmosphere whilst the TV was on the news at a calm volume level. Kori placed her bag down at the end of the sofa and she gently removed her feet from her flat shoes.

"Your dwelling is very nice, Richard." Kori complimented, feeling the need to be polite,

"Ah, it's alright, I guess." Dick chuckled. Kori smiled but her eyebrows rose in question,

"May I please wash my face in your bathroom, Richard?" Kori asked timidly,

"Yeah of course," Dick replied, pointing to the door. Kori nodded and headed into the bathroom, closing the door behind her.

Dick sighed and fell onto the sofa. He hated how upset she had been. It was clear to him that his feelings for Kori were developing deeper as the time passed. He had never met Kori's boyfriend nor did he  _ever_ want to but he felt that the guy was a waste for her. He wasn't one to make judgment on someone so quickly and maybe it was his feelings for Kori that made his opinion on Xavier so biased but he stood by it. He didn't like her boyfriend one bit. Any boyfriend that makes his girlfriend cry and doesn't even chase her up to find out if she's alright doesn't deserve her in the first place.

Dick smiled at the mere thought of Kori. He liked so many things about her. He liked her appearance; he really liked girls with red hair and Kori's red hair looked so natural on her whereas it looked gross on some girls. Her skin was so exotic and golden and Dick could have sworn that her skin glowed in even the slightest ray of sunlight. Her smile was intoxicating. Every time the corners of her lips turned upwards, Dick felt himself lose his breath a little. By far, his favourite feature of Kori was her eyes. They were such a deep shade of green and each time he stared into them, he felt himself get a little bit lost in their enchanting depth.

He was pulled out of his thoughts of Kori as she wandered out of the bathroom, looking fresh and more upbeat than before. Kori sighed but smiled nevertheless.

"Thank you. That made me feel a little bit better." Kori informed him,

"No problem, Kor," He responded. Kori quirked a small smirk at the use of the nickname as she took a seat beside him on the sofa.

Dick watched her as she idly tapped her fingertips together.

"Do you... Wanna talk about it?" Dick queried. Kori shrugged and sighed,

"We argued because..." She paused, "Xavier is constantly paranoid and at times, he will accuse me of all sorts of things like tonight. He accused me of resenting him. He truly believed that I was beginning to hate him and I wanted to break up. In the end, we simply got angry at each other..."

"Is he... Y'know... Mentally stable?"

Kori glanced at him briefly, "Yes... As far as I am aware that is... However..."

"However?"

"He participates in drug use... A lot..."

"That explains it then,"

"Excuse me?"

"C'mon... Everyone knows that drugs mess with your head. They throw you completely off balance with reality, Kor."

"Mm..."

Dick thought for a moment as a painful silence occurred between them.

"I know something that will cheer you up," Dick announced,

"What?"

Dick enthusiastically jumped up and offered a hand to Kori. She raised an eyebrow and giggled as she accepted his hand. Dick led her into the kitchen portion of his apartment and stood in front of the oven with his hands on his hips. Kori stared at him, curious.

"So... What are we going to do?" Kori quizzed,

"I say we bake a cake." Dick answered,

"Excuse me?" Kori laughed in disbelief,

"What's wrong with baking a cake?"

"Um... It is 10 o'clock at night to start with..."

"So what? Kori, dearest Kori, you have  _got_  to loosen up. Be weird; be crazy."

Kori faintly smiled. Dick took her change of expression as a green light and began getting ingredients out such as flour, sugar and eggs.

Dick politely directed Kori to get the baking tin out of the cupboard whilst he whisked the cake mix in a large plastic bowl. She did as instructed and passed him the tin.

He smoothly transferred the mix from the bowl into the tin and placed it into the oven which was slowly heating up. As the two of them began cleaning the counter, Kori noticed the bag of flour still on the side and slyly got some in her hand. In a flash, Kori flicked the fresh flour at Dick who was shocked to begin with. Kori giggled and placed her fingertips upon her cupid bow lips. Dick's shocked expression changed into a smirk. Kori shrugged.

"You told me to do the loosening up." Kori reminded him.

Dick grinned and followed the flour assault up by throwing a handful of it at Kori in response. Kori squealed and began laughing like a child. She narrowed her eyes playfully at the dark haired boy beside her and a flour war broke out.

Kori gave up trying to grab actual handfuls of flour so she just started brushing the flour at Dick instead. Dick on the other hand, enjoyed grabbing flour and continued to follow those exact tactics.

Kori felt completely carefree as she participated in her flour conflict with her neighbour. Every so often, she would briefly gaze at him. She really was starting to like Dick and she knew that was wrong because she was in a relationship with Xavier; good or bad, it was a relationship nonetheless and she didn't plan on being unfaithful to him. But, it was hard for Kori to simply forget about Dick. He had been so kind to her since his party when he revealed his true self to her instead of the obnoxious jerk he originally made himself out to be. Kori really enjoyed his company too and she couldn't deny that he was very attractive too. She inwardly sighed.

Kori sucked in a breath as she and Dick had a standoff; a pause within their war. Kori smirked and raised an eyebrow at him,

"I believe it is your turn..." She told him. Big mistake.

Dick grinned and shrugged. He stepped closer to her and picked her up over his shoulder. Kori burst out laughing and lightly smacked his shoulder.

"Unfair advantage! You are stronger than I am and- Ah! Richard! Put me down!" Kori giggled, feeling the heat rise in her cheeks. Dick wandered into the main room and he shrugged,

"Sure thing," He replied and with that, he dropped the petite girl onto the sofa. Kori held her stomach in an attempt to stop the tight feeling she felt from laughing too much.

Dick looked down at her and smiled admiringly. She was so amazing and he would literally sit and stare at her for hours if it didn't seem so creepy. Finally, Kori exhaled a heavy breath and blew her hair off of her face. Her jade eyes fell upon his face and a smile began to slowly break out upon her lips.

"That was truly fun..." Kori panted,

"You're welcome." Dick smirked,

"How long will the cake take to bake?"

"Do you realise how many words you just made rhyme?"

Kori giggled,

"Probably about half an hour, give or take."

"Would it be alright if I used the bathroom to wash the flour off of myself?"

"Of course,"

Kori hauled herself up and walked into the bathroom for the second time that evening. She wet a towel when she was in the bathroom and gently dabbed at her clothing and skin to remove all traces of flour. She glanced up at the mirror to briefly check her appearance and noticed that she had a certain aura about her, almost like she was glowing. She had to admit, she had not laughed that much in a  _very_  long time.

Kori convinced herself that simply hanging out with Dick had no negative implication. She was doing nothing wrong.

When Kori ambled out of the bathroom, she noticed that Dick wasn't sitting where she had left him. She got an idea as to where he might have gone and wandered down the hall and found his room. His door was open and Kori felt her cheeks flush a little as she witnessed him changing his shirt. She really needed to stop blushing so much whenever she saw him without a shirt; she was  _such_  a girl.

Dick turned to her and favoured her with one of his signature smiles, "Hey Kor, you can come in you know," He greeted, chuckling lightly.

Kori felt herself smile back at him and she took a few steps into his room. He pulled on a fresh grey t-shirt and moved to place his dirty clothes into his hamper.

Kori glanced around his room with curiosity. She gave into a small smile at seeing how his room was a typical boy's room. There were posters of cars, bands and sports stars. There were even some flags of high school memorabilia pinned up.

There was a specific object that took up placement on Dick's bedside table and Kori's expression softened when her eyes spotted it. She got closer to his bedside table and gently ran her fingers over the edge of the frame. She assumed that the man and woman in the photo were his deceased parents. She smiled sadly, feeling sympathetic for Dick.

Dick appeared beside her which caused Kori to look up at him. He mirrored her expression in a way of telling her that it was okay.

"I would be correct in assuming... These are your parents?" Kori whispered,

Dick nodded, "Don't get me wrong, Bruce has done everything for me but... I never want to forget their faces..." He explained,

"I understand... Your mother was very pretty, Richard."

Dick smiled a little more, "Thanks"

A moment of complete silence passed but Dick was the one to break it,

"How about we go and check on the cake?"

"Oh! Yes!"

Kori turned away and strolled back through the main room and into the kitchen with Dick following closely behind her. Dick placed the oven glove over his hand as he opened the oven and dragged the cake tin out.

"Kor, could you pass me a rounded knife please?" Dick asked, politely,

"Of course," Kori replied. She scanned the drawer and found a knife with a very blunt and rounded tip. She crouched down and passed the desired knife to Dick. He proceeded to push the knife into the middle of the cake.

Kori raised an eyebrow, "What are you doing?" She queried,

"It's to see if it's cooked. If the knife comes out clean, it means it's cooked. If it comes out with gunk on it that means it's not cooked all the way through yet." He informed her, earning a nod of understanding.

Dick pulled the rounded knife out of the middle of the cake and smiled as Kori clapped happily. The knife was completely clean.

He stood up straight and placed the cake on the counter. Then, he opened the cupboard which apparently held all of his cooking ingredients. He gestured to the cupboard with his hand,

"Which colour fondant should we put over it?" He asked,

"Mm... Purple!" Kori answered, enthusiastically. Dick chuckled and grabbed the tub of purple fondant. He grasped the rolling pin and began rolling out the fun coloured fondant. Afterwards, he carefully placed the fondant over the whole cake and smoothed it all out. He handed Kori the icing bag which was already filled with white frosting. Kori giggled and began frosting the edges of the cake before finishing with frosting a smiley face in the middle of it. Dick smiled softly as he noticed her mood had picked up substantially.

"Do you bake a lot?" Kori wondered, "There are a lot of supplies for such an activity..."

"I get cravings for cake... Like, a lot... So, I'm always prepared to bake." Dick replied, laughing nervously.

He transferred the cake onto a large plate and wandered out onto the small balcony overlooking Gotham City. He placed the cake down on the little table upon the balcony and grabbed two forks from his back pocket. He handed one to Kori who looked like she was about to explode with cheerfulness.

They took a seat on the two chairs placed beside the table. Kori took a chunk of the cake with her fork and lifted it to her mouth. She chewed the moist and fluffy confection and closed her eyes in delight as she delved into the enchanting taste.

Dick chuckled and also began to dig into the pretty cake. As Dick lifted his fork over the cake more, the metal clinked with Kori's fork. Apparently, she was defending her side.

"Hey!" He chuckled,

Kori smirked, "Stick to your side, Grayson!" Kori giggled,

"Violent Anders, very violent." Dick grinned, winking at her.

Kori laughed aloud and lifted her slender fingers to her lips,

"I wonder if I make you laugh enough, you'll spit the cake out..." Dick wondered out loud,

"Do not even try it." Kori threatened, playfully,

Dick nodded, "Alright, I won't. I promise,"

Kori smiled triumphantly before giving into a tired yawn. She rubbed her eyes like a child and tilted her head slightly,

Dick smiled, "Tired?"

"A little... Yes."

"Feel like calling it a night?"

"Apologies, Richard..."

"You can't help being tired, Kor. Sides, as long as you're feeling better, my job is done for the night."

Kori felt her cheeks heat up as she got to her feet. Dick picked up the cake and walked back into the kitchen. He placed the cake on the counter and brought a plastic box out from a cupboard. He used a sharp knife to cut the cake in half. He continued to place the half Kori had been eating from into the plastic container. He turned to Kori with a grin and handed her the contained food.

Kori smiled and accepted it from him. She began walking towards the front door and was aware of the fact that Dick was behind her. They reached the door and Kori opened it and stepped out slightly,

"Thank you for cheering me up tonight, Richard." Kori said, calmly,

"Hey, don't worry. That's what friends are for," Dick responded,

"Still. It truly helped."

Kori leaned in and pulled Dick into a heartfelt embrace. Dick was caught off guard initially but that melted away as soon as his arms encircled her small waist. The hug seemed to last forever but for Dick it ended a lot quicker than he would've liked.

"Goodnight, Richard,"

"Night, Kor."

Kori turned away and strode over to her apartment. She opened the door and closed it behind her after she stepped inside. Neither she nor Dick could erase the smile that insisted on being upon their lips and neither of them really minded anyway...


	7. Chapter 7

The following night, Dick felt like he was experiencing a sense of déjà vu. He tapped the keys of his laptop and tilted his head to the side to keep his phone steady. He was talking to Wally while writing up some reports and file updates for work.

"So, are you excited about tomorrow night?" Wally asked,

"Oh yeah. I'm ecstatic." Dick replied, sarcastically,

"Have you asked any special girls to be your date?"

"Well... I was thinking of asking Kori... But... She has a boyfriend so-"

"Go for it!"

"Were you listening when I said she had a boyfriend?"

"Yeah but so what? It doesn't have to be considered as a romantic gesture. For all anyone else knows, you're just being a nice friend and stuff."

"I guess... Maybe I'll go-" Dick paused as he suddenly heard raised voices. He raised an eyebrow towards his door. He heard Wally asking questions through the phone so he placed the phone to his ear once more.

"Duuuuuude? Are you there?" Wally sang,

"I'll call you back." Dick stated, before ending the call. He slowly got up off of his bed and wandered into the main room of his apartment. He did his best to stay as quiet as possible.

Through the wall, he could hear a man and woman screaming at each other. Dick gritted his teeth as he realised it was Kori and Xavier arguing once again. He balled his hands into fists in an attempt to contain his anger. He was angry because he felt like Xavier was the one who caused so many problems for Kori and he felt that Xavier really didn't deserve such an amazing girlfriend like Kori.

He could hear it in Kori's strained voice when she yelled that she had either  _been_  crying or she was crying. Dick happily prepared himself for when their argument ended and Kori needed cheering up. He had already taken a liking to making Kori feel better after her arguments with Xavier. He simply liked to see her smile and he enjoyed spending time with her in order to get to know her.

Suddenly, Dick was brought out of his reverie as he heard a door slam shut. The voices evaporated and all he could hear now was quiet sobs coming from Kori who had apparently been left to deal with her broken relationship alone. Dick waited for a couple of minutes to make sure he wasn't going to be hassled by Kori's bastard of a boyfriend.

He meekly left his apartment whilst placing his key in his pocket. He had a feeling he wasn't gonna be back for a little while. He ambled closer to Kori's door and rapped his knuckles against it.

After a couple of moments, the door opened to reveal a distraught Kori who had red puffy eyes and tears still sliding down her cheeks. She tilted her head to the side slightly as if mentally apologizing to him.

Dick softly smiled at her, "C'mere." He said, calmly,

Kori nodded and walked towards him, her face scrunching up slightly as she began crying again. Her cries became muffled as she received instant solace from Dick. He hushed her quietly and held her comfortingly. He even went as far as to stroke her hair slightly in an attempt to soothe her ruffled feelings and thoughts.

Dick pulled away from her after a short time and patted her shoulder. He stepped inside and closed the door behind him as he followed Kori into the main area of her apartment.

He smiled fondly. Her apartment was a mix of pink and purple colours. It was cosy yet extremely girly. Seemed about right.

They sat down on Kori's light coloured sofa and began to watch TV together, in silence. Kori exhaled a lot in apparent relief. It was nice for Dick to know that something as simple as his presence was making her feel a little less upset.

"I am sorry... That you were forced to hear it..." Kori whispered, her voice barely audible.

"Don't apologise. I'm glad that I heard it so I could check to see if you were alright." Dick responded, giving her a reassuring smile.

Kori gave him a ghost of a small smile and took a chance by leaning against his shoulder. She didn't know if the movement was going to make him feel uncomfortable but apparently, he was fine with it.

"Thank you..." She murmured. She felt Dick nod in response but she knew the question was on the tip of his tongue and she couldn't blame him for wanting to know either.

"So... What was it about tonight?" Dick urged,

"He was inebriated and... He becomes aggressive when he consumes alcoholic beverages... He said hurtful things which made me angry but I know that he will simply forget what he said by the morning." Kori answered, lowering her eyes a little.

Dick shook his head. It made him furious to know that Xavier could act any way that he wanted to without getting chased up on it. He didn't like that Xavier yelled at Kori whenever he felt like it just because he knew that she wouldn't dare fight him on it. Kori was practically his emotional punching bag.

He exhaled a big breath to calm himself of his own irritation. In the process, he noticed Kori's eyes were fluttering as she drifted in and out of sleep. Dick decided to let Kori fall asleep. He knew she would be exhausted after arguing with Xavier two nights in a row.

After a couple of minutes, Dick heard steady heavy breathing and chanced a glance down at Kori who was fast asleep. He smiled and calmly reached over to grip the TV remote. He switched off the TV and set the remote aside again.

He moved slowly so that he didn't wake Kori up. He gently lifted her into his arms in a bridal style. Kori groaned and Dick felt his heart stop for a minute in fear that he had woke her up however; she didn't stir at all.

Dick stepped carefully through the main room until he reached Kori's room. He carried her over to her bed and set her down tenderly. He pulled the covers over her and tucked her in a little, making sure that she would be comfortable throughout the night.

Dick watched her for a moment with a sad smile. He sighed at the realisation that he would never be able to call her  _his_  as long as she remained emotionally tied to Xavier. Dick turned away from the sleeping beauty and left her apartment to go back to his own.

Light trickled through the small gap of Kori's violet curtains and lingered over her face. She yawned and stretched her arms out in front of her as she shook off the sandman's spell. Her eyes darted around the room with curiosity. She suddenly sat up, confused.

She replayed the night before in her head and remembered that she had fallen asleep on Dick. _'He must have placed me in my bed'_. Kori thought.

She smiled at the thought of the dark haired boy but considered that she had work this morning. She grabbed her phone from her bedside table and checked the time.

She grinned as she realised she had plenty of time to get ready. Kori threw back the covers and completed a healthy morning routine.

Kori got into the shower and washed her body and face. She was happy that she decided to wash her face due to the washed out black makeup that covered a good portion of her cheeks. When Kori got out, she dried her hair and dried her body.

She found her uniform on the back of a chair and shrugged herself into it. She sighed. She was happy that she had lots of time but she still didn't like going to work. But really, who did like going to work?

Kori made herself some toast and chewed on it while she applied fresh mascara to her eyelashes.

With about 20 minutes still to spare, Kori grabbed her bag and coat and decided to leave. There was no point waiting around if she was ready.

Kori left her apartment and locked the door behind her. She began walking towards the exit of the foyer but she heard a familiar voice say her name.

"Hey, Kor?" Dick said, catching her attention. Kori turned to see him exiting his own apartment, apparently on his way to work too.

She noticed that Dick was wearing a smart suit. She realised that she had never actually seen him in work attire. She felt her cheeks heat up a little. He looked  _very_  attractive in a suit.

Kori smiled, "Oh, hello Richard," She returned, cheerfully.

"Uh... How are you feeling this morning?"

"Better... Thank you for staying with me and thank you for putting me in my room. That was very sweet of you,"

"No problem..."

They stared at each other with the sound of silence surrounding them for a couple of seconds. Kori inhaled a breath and shifted her eyes from side to side, briefly,

"I... I should get going for work..." Kori stammered, slowly starting to turn away.

"Wait!" Dick exclaimed, causing Kori to look at him with a curious expression plastered upon her face,

"Yes? Is something wrong?"

"Well... It's just... Are you doing anything tonight?"

"Nothing. Why?"

"Well, I wanted to ask you a couple of nights ago so you had enough time to prepare..."

"For what?"

"Wait... What time are you working til?"

"5:00pm. It is an earlier shift tonight."

"Alright... Kori... Would you maybe wanna be my date... As friends of course... to this charity ball that Bruce is throwing tonight?"

Kori visibly brightened at the idea of dressing up and going out but then she became dull immediately after.

"I do not know, Richard... If Xavier knew..." She trailed off,

"C'mon. Just don't tell him. Besides, you deserve a night to dress all fancy and drink champagne and stuff! And Rachel and Garfield and the others will all be there too."

"They will?"

"Yeah. Like I said, I wanted to ask you the same time that I asked all of them but... You've been a little preoccupied and I didn't know if I should ask..."

"Alright, Richard. I shall be your date," Kori agreed, smiling. She stopped short and rethought her statement, "As a friend..."

Dick smirked, "Yeah, of course..."

They both bowed their heads and smiled involuntarily. Dick reached into his pocket and retrieved the invitation before handing it over to Kori.

"Do you have any fancy dresses? It's kinda like the dress code. It sucks but what can you do?"

Kori giggled, "I do. I shall see you tonight then?"

"Yes, you will, Kori."

Kori smiled as she slowly backed away. She bumped her arm on the door slightly but cleared her throat, "Now... I really should be going." She admitted,

"Oh! Right! Sorry!" Dick apologised. Kori shook her head, telling him that it was okay. She raised her hand and waved to him.

Dick smiled and returned the wave goodbye. With that, Kori left and hurried down the stairs.

Dick could barely contain his joy at the fact that Kori had agreed to go with him to the charity ball. He felt a weird twisted feeling in his stomach. The type of feeling you got when you were really nervous or excited about something. He smirked as he thought about her. Sure, she had a boyfriend but that didn't forbid her from going out with a friend. He sighed in content. He simply hoped his work day would pass quickly so that the evening would come quicker...


	8. Chapter 8

The evening rolled around and Dick was so thankful for that. After asking Kori to go with him to Bruce's charity ball that morning, he felt so nervous and jittery; he could barely concentrate on his work all day.

Dick gulped as he looked at his own reflection in his mirror. He had a smart black suit on with the addition of a dark red dress shirt instead of a white one. His hair wasn't very different; he had simply styled it in a less messy way.

He cringed when he thought back to earlier days when Bruce made him go to his charity events. His usual hair style as a teenager was to have spiked hair but when there was a charity ball or party, he slicked it all back with a giant handful of hair gel. At the time, Dick thought he looked classy and suave but now that he was older, he realised that he just looked like a bit of a douche.

Dick shook his head and focused on his appearance now. He just wanted to look presentable... He knew Kori was going to look amazing so he couldn't look sloppy, now could he?

He noticed his cheeks turning pink at how nervous he had become at wanting to look good for Kori. He couldn't help it. He had developed deep feelings for Kori that he couldn't shake no matter what.

He sighed and shook his head to clear his mind. He turned away from the mirror and picked up his invitation and his keys. He turned everything in his apartment off and wandered out of his apartment, locking the door behind him.

He walked and rounded the small section of wall that separated his and Kori's apartments. He stood in front of Kori's door and felt his heart pounding hard in his chest. He tugged on his collar a little and knocked lightly on the door.

After a moment, Kori's door slowly opened to reveal the angel herself. Dick's jaw dropped at the sight of her. She wore a long black dress that was strapless and cut plainly across her chest, tastefully. There was a slit that went all the way up her right side and ended at her hip, revealing her bare leg; something Dick couldn't help but notice. She had on a pair of simple black heels which helped define the small silver anklet she wore. She wore a silver bangle on each wrist and a thin necklace with a diamond encrusted star around her slender neck. Her hair remained down but she had clipped some up, just for a small difference.

Kori clasped her hands in front of her and bowed her head, shyly. She blushed as Dick struggled to stop staring at her. He shook his head and rubbed the back of his neck, sheepishly,

"I was not sure what to do with my hair so I am afraid it remains boring for tonight..." Kori explained,

"Kori, are you kidding? You look... Stunning..." Dick breathed, looking her up and down to make sure that she was really standing in front of him.

Kori made an 'o' shape with her mouth as his words shocked her. The blush painted across her cheeks deepened and she brushed a piece of hair behind her ear, timidly.

"Oh... Well, Thank you, Richard..." Kori replied, eyeing his own attire, "You look quite handsome, also."

"Ah, thanks..." He mumbled, nervously,

They stood there for a minute simply smiling at each other before Dick broke the comfortable silence between them,

"Do you wanna get going?" He queried. Kori beamed at him and nodded.

Dick offered her his arm like a posh gentleman and she giggled before accepting it.

As the two of them cruised down the streets in Dick's black Lamborghini, they listened to the ambience that was the radio. Kori found herself humming along to the songs that played and Dick kind of wished that their destination was different.

He wished that they were on their way to a fancy restaurant where they were sharing their first date. He hoped for so much with Kori but deep down, he knew he would eventually be disappointed. Kori didn't seem like she was going to be breaking up with Xavier any time soon so hope was all he had to hold onto.

"Richard?" Kori asked, pulling Dick out of his deep thoughts,

"Uh, y-yeah?" He responded, stuttering due to being caught off guard,

"Is it alright if I open the window?"

"Yeah, of course,"

Kori nodded and pressed the button that rolled her window down. He watched her out of the corner of his eye. She closed her eyes and smiled with a peaceful expression as the wind blew through her long auburn locks.

Soon enough, their journey ended and Dick pulled up near the manor. Kori raised an eyebrow at him,

"You are not going to drive onto the premises?" She quizzed,

"Stupid paparazzi... I don't want them to see us together..." He stated,

"Oh..."

"No! I didn't mean it offensively, Kor... I meant, I don't want them to make loads of accusations and I'm sure Xavier would see it in the news and I can guarantee that he wouldn't be the happiest guy in the world..."

"Very true... Is there a way around the paparazzi?"

Dick thought for a moment. He bit his lip in concentration and got out of the car. Kori watched him as he walked around the car and opened her door. He offered her his hand which she happily accepted.

"I know a way around the manor. I used to sneak in like this when I was late home after being out..." Dick explained, grinning. Kori giggled and enjoyed the fact that he held her hand while he led her up the side of the wall surrounding the manor. They continued walking together until the wall seemingly stopped.

Dick presented a wooden gate that was within the brick wall. Kori clapped her hands,

"Oh! How helpful to our situation!" She expressed,

Dick smiled and opened the gate. They both walked through and hurried around the back of the manor where people were gathered in groups within the garden. Kori gasped as she saw the large piece of land that was the 'garden'.

There were classy strings of fairy lights that were draped back and forth across the garden. The swimming pool was lit up with small candles that stayed afloat upon lily pads.

"Yeah... Bruce likes to make an impression..." Dick whispered to Kori, gently touching her waist,

"You do not say..." Kori breathed, still amazed by the appearance of the garden.

"C'mon. Let's try and find the others..." Dick suggested, pulling her along as they began looking for people they knew.

Kori suddenly spotted a pale girl in a dark purple dress with black laced fingerless gloves as they wandered inside the manor.

"I see Rachel," Kori announced, nodding her head in the girl's direction. Dick smiled at her observational skills and they strode closer.

As they drew nearer, they noticed that Rachel was with Garfield, Vic, Wally, Jen and Karen. The group caught sight of Kori and Dick and practically cheered over their arrival,

"Hey guys," Dick greeted, releasing Kori's waist in order to not raise questions among their friends.

"Finally! Where have you been, man!?" Wally demanded, smacking a hand down against his shoulder.

"Paparazzi were at the front of the manor... We had to come through the back way," Dick informed him, earning a nod in response.

"Ah! Well, you are here now!" Karen chimed,

"Hey, Bee, do you hear the song that's playing?" Vic asked,

"Oh my gosh! That is my jam! We gotta go dance, Vic!" Karen insisted, pulling on his arm. Vic shrugged and put up little resistance against his girlfriend. They ran off into the crowds in order to express their 'dance skills'.

Garfield had his eyes locked on something and he yelped with glee suddenly, "Dudes! The food has been brought out! I need to get in on that!" He told them,

"Is food all you think about?" Rachel questioned,

"Most of the time, yes."

Rachel rolled her eyes,

"C'mon Rae! Come with me!"

"... Pass."

Garfield gave her a playful glare before running off towards the refreshments table. Rachel cringed as she saw her boyfriend stuffing his face with pizza squares and salad. She could have sworn she saw him eat something that wasn't even food. She shrugged and turned to Kori.

"Do you want to go and get a drink?" She asked,

"Mm... That sounds good." Kori answered. She took two steps before she stopped and turned to Dick,

"Would you like me to bring you a drink, Richard?" She offered,

"Uh... No thanks. I'm good for now. Thanks," He returned.

Kori nodded and continued walking towards the drinks table with Rachel by her side.

Dick smiled absentmindedly as he watched Kori stroll off. He sighed a bit louder than he anticipated. He turned his head slightly to see Jenny and Wally giving him a smirk.

"What?" He scoffed,

"You like Kori!" Jenny blurted out,

"Well duh, Jen!" Wally added,

"Wh-What are you guys talking about?" Dick stammered,

"Dick... The way you're looking at her is  _not_  friendship. You have feelings for her, don't you?" Jenny asked, softly. Dick nodded, almost ashamed,

"What's wrong with liking her?" Wally asked,

"I already told you, she has a boyfriend. And a psycho boyfriend at that," Dick informed him,

"I think you should tell her how you feel..." Jenny suggested,

"Are you crazy, Jen?" Dick retorted,

"Well... Do you like her  _that_  much?" Jenny wondered,

"I really do... She's so beautiful, sweet, intelligent... I could literally go on for hours."

"Aw!" Jenny cooed, clapping her hands.

Wally placed a hand on Dick's shoulder, "You should dude... Who knows what the outcome will be. She might even like you too."

Dick sighed and opened his mouth to speak again but he eyed Kori and Rachel returning with their glasses of champagne.

"The manor is very elegant, is it not?" Kori commented, smiling up at Dick as she returned. He felt the corners of his own mouth turn upwards. She was so endearing.

"It's okay, I guess." Dick shrugged, glancing around the manor.

"It was great when we were kids. We used to ride our bikes around the whole house until Bruce would come in and yell at us..." Wally admitted, chuckling. Dick smirked at the memory of himself and Wally at age 11, running around the huge building like they had had 20 cups of coffee each within the time frame of 5 minutes.

Garfield suddenly appeared beside Rachel with cake in one hand.

"I love this place!" He exclaimed, his mouth full. Rachel made a face of disgust and rolled her eyes at his behaviour.

Jenny giggled at Rachel and Garfield but her interest perked when she heard a slow song come on. She gasped and turned to Wally with hope in her eyes that he would be up for dancing. Wally sighed and smiled at her. He didn't need to ask.

"Come on, then." He chuckled, taking Jenny's hand within his own. Garfield grinned and swallowed the food in his mouth before turning to Rachel.

"Hey Rae, wanna dance?" He proposed, offering her his hand. Rachel shrugged and accepted his hand,

"Anything that will stop you from stuffing your face with food." She said in a monotone.

Kori smiled at them as they strolled over to where every other couple was slow dancing together. She was acutely aware that Dick's eyes were on her but she resisted the urge to blush. Instead, she clasped her hands in front of her and meekly glanced back at Dick with a small smile.

Dick gulped. He decided to take a chance and ask her to dance. It was a kind gesture and he really wanted to slow dance with her.

"Hey Kor, do you... feel like dancing too?" Dick posed,

Kori's eyes lit up and she nodded, "Okay," She answered in a hushed tone.

Dick grinned and gently took her hand in his. He led her over to the area in which people were dancing and stood in front of her. He was hesitant about placing his hands on her waist and Kori clearly sensed this. She giggled and took his hands in hers. She proceeded to place them on her waist. He looked at her with a cautious expression, like it was bad of him to touch her.

Kori placed her own hands on Dick's shoulders and fought not to blush as she stared up at him. She couldn't help but notice the incredible shade of blue that his eyes were. There were light and dark flecks within his eyes that reflected the light nicely.

They began to sway in time with each other and Kori made an impulsive move. She rested her head against his right shoulder and continued in closing her eyes.

She knew that her actions could be considered as wrong bearing in mind that she had a boyfriend but she couldn't help it. She did like Richard Grayson and there was no way around that fact. He was so different to Xavier. He was funny, attractive, sweet and considerate of her feelings. She could imagine herself being a lot happier in a relationship with him rather than Xavier. It dawned on her however, that breaking up with Xavier could very well be catastrophic. She knew he got paranoid a lot and her breaking up with him may contribute to him having some kind of psychological outburst. She shut her eyes tighter at the thought of the negative outcomes of breaking up with Xavier.

Dick could sense that Kori was having some kind of inner conflict so he stroked her hair gently, hoping that he was helping rather than causing her further turmoil. He noted that she seemed to visibly relax under his touch which gave him a sense of achievement. They continued to sway in that position; Kori's head on his shoulder and one of his hands stroking her long auburn hair.

The hours flew by at the charity event and finally, Dick and Kori found themselves walking up the stairs to the third floor where their apartments were.

"Your father's speech was-" Kori stopped and felt an amendment was needed, "Apologies... Mr Wayne's speech was very pleasant. He feels strongly for the charities he supports, yes?"

Dick gave her a small smile at her backtracking on using 'your father'. He nodded to her, "Yeah. He is really passionate about the charities. Especially ones for either underprivileged kids or orphanages. He's had a lot of experience in that area so..." Dick explained.

"I see..." Kori acknowledged, stopping outside of her door. She turned to Dick and shyly smiled.

"So..." She trailed off,

"So..." Dick repeated, shuffling his feet like a nervous teenager, "I... Guess I'll see you tomorrow or something?"

"Yes... I... Thank you... Tonight was truly very fun..."

"I'm glad you enjoyed it..."

Kori stepped forward and craned her neck up towards Dick. She briefly pecked his cheek and stepped back again. She kept her eyes downcast, "Goodnight, Richard..." She whispered.

She turned around and opened her door before slipping inside for the rest of the night.

Dick touched his cheek with his fingertips. Did Kori really just kiss his cheek? He knew he was having a teenage moment by getting all jittery with a simple kiss on the cheek but he couldn't help himself. Dick chewed on the inside of his cheek in an attempt to keep his wide grin from spreading any more. He turned and strode over to his own apartment door. The night had been very good to him indeed...


	9. Chapter 9

The following day was stormy and the rain lashed down upon pavements and windows. It was the type of weather that caused a person's mood to decrease a considerable amount. It was such wonderful weather for Valentine's Day.

The whole group were all taking refuge within JaVaVu considering it was Saturday and everyone was off from work except Rachel and Kori.

Rachel was sitting with them whilst pretending to clean the coffee table that was surrounded by the big sofa and chairs. They were all talking about their plans for the Valentines evening which consisted of dining out for most. Jenny took a sip of her coffee and scrunched her face up slightly.

"Ugh... This needs a bit of sugar..." Jenny stated. She looked over at Kori who was behind the counter, cleaning coffee mugs rather aggressively. The pink haired girl gulped,

"K-Kori?" She began,

"Yes? What is it, Jennifer?" Kori returned, bitterly. Practically everyone turned to stare at Kori. No one ever used Jenny's proper name... It was just plain weird.

"Um... I was wondering... Could I have a packet of sugar, please?" Jenny asked, cautiously.

Kori closed her eyes and exhaled, irritated. Jenny glanced at the others,

"I'm not kidding; I'm really scared of her right now." She hissed.

Kori marched out from behind the counter and snatched a handful of sugar packets from the box they were in. She stood beside Jenny and handed her all of the packets.

"Uh... Thanks... Now I have some for home too!" Jenny chirped, trying to get Kori to crack a smile. She didn't budge.

The red headed girl turned away and began scrubbing a table. The others honestly had a feeling that she was going to wear the table down. The all exchanged confused glances and eventually all had their eyes on Rachel.

"What?" She mouthed,

Karen pointed to her and then to Kori, "You're her best friend," Karen mouthed back, "You should ask what's wrong!"

Rachel sighed and rolled her eyes. Of course she was concerned for her friend's feelings but she knew how Kori was. She knew she would rant slightly.

"Hey Kori, mind sharing what you're so pissed off about?" Rachel blurted, keeping a straight face. Everyone else had wide eyes and froze on the spot. They all knew only Rachel could be so direct.

Kori spun back around with an angry expression on her face. She threw the cloth down on the table and crossed her arms over her chest with her hipped cocked to one side. Dick kinda hated himself at that moment for thinking for a split second how she looked sexy when she was angry.

"Oh nothing! You know, it is just when people make plans they are supposed to stick to those plans and yet  _some people_  feel no remorse for cancelling plans. Oh and of course it does not matter; it is not like Valentine's Day is a very  _special_  day or anything. Ugh!" Kori complained, pacing back and forth as she spoke,

"I'm gonna take a shot in the dark here and guess that Xavier cancelled on your guys' plans for tonight?" Wally assumed.

Kori's sour facial expression softened completely. Her shoulders slumped as she exhaled a deep sigh and fell into the seat beside Dick.

"He told me that he simply has too much work to do and will be too tired to see me." Kori recounted,

"What? That's a lousy excuse, girl!" Vic hollered,

"Yeah... No offense but your boyfriend is a bit of a wang." Wally commented,

Kori shrugged and fell victim to another sigh, "It does not matter... I shall simply watch the romantic comedies and consume large quantities of ice cream tonight instead."

"That sounds... fun..." Karen struggled to input enthusiasm into her statement. Kori rolled her eyes and pushed herself to her feet,

"Oh yes... So fun..." Kori deadpanned. She noted someone putting their hand up in the air for her attention. She grabbed her notepad from her apron and wandered over to the customer.

Dick watched her go and bit his lip in concentration. He hated knowing that she was upset. However, Kori's predicament gave him a bright idea. Wally noticed Dick's 'lightbulb' moment and smirked while he took a sip of his tea.

Kori exhaled a big sigh as she pulled her uniform over her head and hurled it to the floor. She swallowed a lump in her throat and fought tears that were waiting to spill. Of course she wanted to cry. Who would ever want to be alone on Valentine's Day?

She found her pyjamas and put them on. She tied her hair up in a messy bun, making sure to leave her bangs and front stray pieces of hair down. She proceeded to slip her feet into her fluffy slippers. With that, she trudged out of her room into the main room whilst grabbing a blanket on the way over to the sofa. She wrapped the blanket around herself and held her unhappy facial expression.

Kori took a seat on her sofa and grabbed the TV remote. She growled as she saw no good movies were on as she flicked through the channels.

Suddenly, Kori heard a knock on her front door. She raised an eyebrow and tilted her head to the side. She wasn't expecting anyone... Unless it was a drunken Xavier come to pay her a visit. She hesitated before getting up at the idea of that.

She shuffled to the door and opened it, cautiously. She was shocked to see the person who stood before her.

Dick stood there, leaning against the wall with a sweet little smile plastered to his face. He cleared his throat and stood up straight,

"Alright, Miss Anders. Now, I know that I'm not your boyfriend but I would still love to make your Valentine's evening less crappy. So, I have a bag full of takeout menus, junk food and movies. What'd you say?" He proposed,

Kori breathed out laugh. His gesture had shocked her immensely, "Richard... You are surprisingly spontaneous, I must say." She commented,

"I didn't like the idea of you spending tonight alone. You deserve better than that." He told her.

Kori smiled, "Thank you," She whispered,

"Oh!" Dick chirped, remembering something. He pulled something from behind his back.

In his hand sat a small white teddy bear that was fluffier than Kori's slippers. It had small black beady eyes and a stitched on smile. It was finished off with a small red bow stitched up by its right ear.

"I thought it'd be nice to get some form of present that's traditional... Or something." Dick explained.

Kori gently took the white teddy bear from Dick's hands and smiled, "Oh! It is so cute!" Kori cooed,

"I'm glad you like it," Dick informed her. Kori took a step forward and threw her arms around Dick's neck in order to give him a heartfelt embrace. Dick smiled and happily returned the hug.

When Kori released him she beamed up at him, "You are the sweetest person I believe I have ever met." She admitted,

"Thanks," Dick chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck, nervously. Kori stepped to the side to let Dick pass her and she closed the door afterwards, once he was inside.

Kori munched on her second slice of pizza and crossed her legs beneath the thick violet material. She and Dick were seated comfortably on the sofa with Kori's violet blanket draped over their laps. There was a pile of different chocolate bars between them and an extra large pizza on the coffee table. Alongside the pizza, there was a big bowl of popcorn, brownie pieces and a bag of cookies. They had both sat together to watch "27 Dresses".

"I knew it! Dress hoarder!" Dick bellowed at the TV,

"I think that is  _so_  nice!" Kori declared,

"To keep a bunch of ugly dresses that will never be worn again?"

"She clearly keeps them all for the memories and does not wish to forget,"

"I guess... But the guy wouldn't have reacted the way that he did,"

"I agree with you on that. I doubt that he would skip past it so very quickly,"

"Right? In reality, he'd probably be like: Oh my god. You're a freak."

Kori giggled with her fingertips against her soft lips.

"Oh look, a montage of her trying on the dresses."

"I like that one... Oh! And that one!"

"Strange, I thought you would have gone with the pink dress,"

"You know, I like more colours than just pink."

"Could have fooled me..."

Kori faked a gasp and lightly shoved him in a playful manner. Dick chuckled at her actions. Kori sighed in apparent content and patted her stomach,

"I believe I have definitely gained an estimated 4 pounds this evening... Success!" Kori announced,

"What was the goal?" Dick chuckled,

"To feel fat and proud!" Kori giggled,

"You'd still look awesome if you were fat," Dick blurted out. He froze as he immediately realised that he had said that out loud. Kori blushed a light pink and brushed some hair behind her ear.

Dick cleared his throat and flicked through the channels on the TV as soon as their movie ended.

"Hey, "The Notebook" is on... That seems like an appropriate movie for Valentine's day." Dick stated, attempting to ease Kori away from the embarrassing moment that occurred a couple of minutes beforehand.

"I always cry at this movie," Kori admitted,

"It is kinda sad..."

"I believe the book is different from the movie."

"Huh... No kidding."

Dick was ready to just jump out of her window. He felt so awkward after saying that out loud. Although... Dick did have an idea on what else he could talk about. He had been meaning to ask Kori something which continuously crossed his mind.

"Kori...?"

"Yes?"

"Can I ask you something?"

"Of course,"

"You argue with Xavier... A lot. Why don't you just break up with him? If you don't mind me asking..."

Kori shook her head and sighed, "Believe me; I have wanted to do the breaking up with him for a very long time... However, every time I have brought it up... Xavier becomes distressed and says that he will harm himself because he cannot be without me..."

"What? That's emotional blackmail, Kori!"

"I am aware... But, what if he is being truthful? I do not wish to feel guilty and responsible for him doing such a thing."

"He doesn't deserve you."

Kori remained quiet and she bowed her head and stared at her hands in her lap, "And yet... He has me..."

"Were any of your other boyfriends ever like Xavier?"

Kori shook her head, "In truth, I have only ever had two boyfriends. My first boyfriend was named Roy Harper. He was not like Xavier and yet he was. He was not possessive or aggressive but he did not put very much effort into our relationship so it did not last very long. However, I met Xavier in the second to last year of High School. He was very sweet and considerate then..."

"What changed?"

"He became friends with some... Very dark people. He began drinking alcohol excessively and he began experimenting with drug use... He became paranoid, angry and confused about so many things, also."

"Kori... Does part of you not want to break up with him because you feel like you'll be giving up on him? I mean... He has so many problems..."

"I suppose I do feel that way, yes... It is difficult... Not knowing how things will go if we were not together..."

"But do you love him anymore?"

Kori slowly shook her head, "Not in the same way as when we were first together... Now I more so dread seeing him rather than look forward to seeing him."

"You should still consider breaking up with him. You deserve someone who makes you properly happy, Kor."

Kori faintly smiled, "Thank you,"

Dick smiled back and leaned forward to take another slice of pizza from the box on the table. Kori bit her lip as she was curious about something,

"What about you, Richard?" Kori asked,

"What'd you mean?" He returned, sitting back,

"Well... We have talked about my encounters with boyfriends..."

Dick chuckled, "So, you wanna know about my ex girlfriends?"

Kori smirked, "Only if you are comfortable talking about the subject."

"Well, I'll be honest with you. I've only ever had one real girlfriend before. Her name was Barbra Gordon and we had known each other since we were like 10 years old? And then when we were about 16 years old we got together and then at 18 we broke up... And we haven't spoken since then."

"That is awful," Kori breathed, her eyes turning sad, "She was your childhood friend also..."

"Yeah well... She's the one who ruined it."

"She was...?"

Dick nodded and sighed, "She was cheating on me for about 4 months which happened to be the last 4 months of our relationship. As soon as I found out; I wanted nothing to do with her."

Kori gasped and softly touched his arm to show her sympathy for him, "I am very sorry, Richard..." She whispered,

Dick shrugged, "It's okay. I mean... She clearly wasn't 'the one' so I didn't lose much, huh?" He told her. They were both silent for a minute until Kori exhaled a breath and sat back against the sofa.

"I believe relationships suck. They never seem to go the way you wish for them to. It is almost not worth it."

"It's probably worth it... If you find the right person that is..." Dick assumed, glancing at Kori.

They stared at each other for a moment before they both turned away with reddened cheeks. They both fought hard to fight the small grins that were threatening the show upon their faces...


	10. Chapter 10

Kori stared at the ground beneath her feet as she sat on Xavier's bed. He had been apologising for the past 10 minutes about cancelling on her the previous night. She didn't exactly care much for his excuses because her night with Dick was better than a night with Xavier probably would have been anyway.

She exhaled a deep breath. Xavier shuffled closer to her on the bed and took her hands in his.

"Kor... I'm really sorry about yesterday... I was really busy and believe me, babe, I wanted nothing more than to spend the night with you." Xavier admitted,

Kori allowed her shoulders to slump but she remained firm by folding her arms over her chest. Xavier proceeded to break the boundaries of her personal space by taking one of her hands in his again. He softly kissed the top of her delicate hand,

"I really am sorry, Kor and to prove it, I have a surprise." He told her enthusiastically. He stood up and led her into the kitchen.

Kori softened as she saw he had a set up a sweet candlelit dinner for them. She cracked a small smile. She wished he would be more spontaneous like he was being tonight.

"What'd you say?" Xavier urged,

Kori rolled her eyes playfully to show that she was no longer as angry as she originally was, "I suppose if you are truly sorry..." She sighed,

Xavier grinned and pulled out a chair for her. Kori obliged him by sitting down. He hurried back to his own seat and sat down upon it.

Kori glanced down at the food on the plate. She was impressed considering Xavier was terrible at cooking when they had first met. Everything on her plate looked quite delicious,

"Your cooking has improved very much so," Kori complimented him, taking a bite of chicken.

"Thanks babe. So, how's the new apartment treating you?" He asked, digging into his own food,

"It is good... My neighbour is very nice too and I have made quite a few new friends,"

"That's good. How long has she lived there?"

Kori paused midway through chewing, "... He..."

She noticed Xavier freeze completely after she said it,

"It's a guy?"

"Yes Xavier, I am allowed to know other males, you know."

"Unless you're sleeping with them,"

Kori rolled her eyes, "Do not be so vulgar."

"What's his name?"

"Richard Grayson,"

"He sounds like a prick,"

"Like you would even begin to know. You are not even civilised enough to ever meet him without doing the freaking out."

"Do you like him?"

"He is very nice-"

"No, I mean romantically."

Kori prayed on her acting skills to drag her through the moment. She plastered a fake expression of shock upon her face and narrowed her eyes at him,

"No! Of course not! What type of girl do you believe me to be!?"

"... Are you sure?"

Kori sighed and placed her cutlery down, "I cannot keep having this argument with you, Xavier..."

"I know... I'm sorry. I know I get a little jealous but I can't help it. You're so amazing and I know that guys will do anything to be with you."

Kori cast her eyes downwards but looked up immediately as Xavier briefly touched her hand from across the table,

"Will you sleep here tonight?" Xavier asked, hopeful,

"I do not know if I am in the mood to-"

"Please? I've missed cuddling with you,"

In truth, Kori desperately wanted to leave without turning back. She wanted to go back to her own apartment block and spend the entire night talking to Dick but she knew that wasn't going to happen. She reluctantly agreed to her boyfriend's request.

Kori shut her eyes tightly as another loud snore erupted from Xavier. She glared at him from the right side of his bed. She hated this. She hated being there and she hated being with Xavier.

When he had been questioning her about Dick, it had completely dawned on Kori that she was no longer in love with Xavier but simply felt obliged to staying with him so he wouldn't do anything reckless. She knew who she had feelings for. She loved Richard Grayson and she couldn't deny it to herself even if she wanted to.

Kori shook her head as she heard a strained snore coming from Xavier. She sighed and silently crept out of the bed. She tiptoed into the main room where the big window was.

There was a large window sill where Kori usually sat during arguments with Xavier but now, she just wanted to stare out and consider everything that was happening around her.

She sat down and drew her knees up to her chin. She tilted her head against the cold window and gazed out at the city of Gotham.

She missed Dick. She had spent  _so_  much time with him in the past month that it was strange to not be with him tonight. She really wanted to see him and she wanted to hear his voice. She bit her lip as she considered calling him. She pressed a button on her phone to reveal the time. 1:37am.

She debated whether or not he would be awake in her head. She exhaled a breath and decided to chance it. She pressed his number and called him.

Kori chewed on her lip and drew patterns on her bare thigh with her index finger as the first couple of rings sounded.

Suddenly, a groggy voice answered the phone with, "Hello?"

"... It is Kori..." She stated, feeling nervous. She heard him shuffle and she assumed he had sat up as his voice sounded concerned afterwards,

"Hey Kor. Are you okay? Has something happened with Xavier?"

"No, no... Everything is fine... I was simply wishing to..."

"To what, Kor?"

"Truthfully... I was wishing to hear your voice... It feels strange because I have been spending so much time with you and tonight I am not with you..."

Dick smiled, "I know. I get exactly what you mean,"

Kori timidly smiled, "I believe I am simply... Missing you..." Kori admitted, brushing some hair behind her ear.

Dick felt his heart thump harder within his chest and he mentally cheered at her statement, "I miss you too, Kor." He replied,

"Well... I suppose I should now attempt to go to sleep..."

"Good luck getting to sleep, Kor. See you tomorrow?"

"It is highly likely, yes."

"Alright... Night Kor,"

"Goodnight, Richard,"

With that, Kori hung up. She leaned her phone against her soft lips and suppressed a huge grin. Kori rubbed her arms as she felt a sudden chill. With a heavy sigh, she returned to bed and easily fell asleep with her mind at ease after talking to Dick...


	11. Chapter 11

The following night, music boomed from a substantially large house on the end of a quiet street. Wally still lived with his parents and he always made sure to throw a party when his parents were out of town. An example of this was tonight.

Dick sipped at his drink and tapped his foot anxiously and out of time with the music playing. He was waiting for Kori to arrive. She had told him during the day that she would be going to Wally's party but there was a part of Dick that worried about whether or not her  _boyfriend_  would change her mind on the matter.

Suddenly, Dick felt a hand against his shoulder which brought him out of his reverie. He turned and was greeted by a grinning Wally,

"Hey man!" Wally yelled. Dick nodded in response,

"Let me guess! You're waiting for Kori!?" Wally continued,

"Yeah, have you seen her?" Dick shouted back.

Wally shook his head, "Don't worry about it! I'm sure she'll be-" He cut off abruptly as he cast his eyes on something past Dick's head.

Dick raised an eyebrow and turned. He suddenly understood why Wally had stopped. Kori was in the middle of the crowd and she looked sensational. Dick smiled softly at the sight of her.

Kori shuffled past some intoxicated people and felt utterly lost. With a few more steps, she glanced up and spotted an all too familiar face. Her jade orbs fell upon Dick's face and noticed that he was already smiling at her. Her cheeks flushed pink and she returned the smile.

Dick used his hand to beckon her over to him. She immediately wandered up to him in order to be near someone she actually knew.

As she approached him, Dick opened his arms for her and they shared a tender embrace. He closed his eyes and allowed himself to fall into all that was Kori. Her scent was enchanting, she was warm and her skin was soft to the touch.

When they released each other, Dick looked her up and down,

"You look amazing!" He yelled, above the music.

"What?" Kori asked, squinting her eyes slightly showing that she hadn't heard him.

"You-" Dick faltered and shook his head.

Without warning, Dick took hold of Kori's hand and led her through the crowds of young adults. Kori blushed at his actions but continued to walk with him. He led her to the back of Wally's house near the open door that led into the garden. Everyone was sitting by the open door and the loud music was less of an issue if they wanted to speak.

Kori saw their friends and momentarily abandoned Dick to go and see them all. Dick smirked and followed her slowly.

"Kori!" Vic hollered, "Finally! Girl, we thought you weren't gonna show!"

"Apologies, I could not choose an outfit," Kori giggled,

"Now the gang's all here, dude!" Garfield cheered.

Dick walked up and gently touched the small of Kori's back which caused her to feel slightly weak in the knees. She enjoyed every touch he gave her; it was always one more sign of affection than Xavier would show her and she knew that meant something significant.

He leaned closer to her ear and she felt her cheeks burn,

"Do you want a drink?" He queried,

Kori nodded, "Oh, yes please," She answered,

"Alcoholic or soft?"

"Soft, please."

Dick smiled and turned away to go and retrieve her beverage. Kori felt a wave of loss when Dick's fingertips fell from the small of her back. She shrugged it off and turned towards the others.

Karen, Rachel and Jenny all got up from their seats and made their way out to the garden. Jenny smiled sweetly and put her hand out for Kori to take,

"What is it?" Kori asked,

"We're gonna go outside for some air and for some girl talk of course. C'mon," Jenny responded, pulling Kori along.

The four girls sat around the table in the garden and a specific couple didn't hold back on asking questions,

"Kori? Can I ask you something?" Karen quizzed,

"Of course, Karen," Kori replied,

"Do you like Dick... More than a friend?" She continued, causing both Rachel and Jenny to lean in a little closer to hear her answer,

Kori stiffened slightly.  _Of course._  Is what she wanted to say but some part of her said that she shouldn't admit it to them yet.

"No, of course not... I have a boyfriend," Kori stated, tapping her fingers against her knee, nervously.

"That doesn't mean you can't have feelings for someone else too." Jenny interjected,

Kori sighed, "I... I do not feel that way towards Richard, friends."

Karen and Jenny shrugged and gave up on their persistency. Suddenly, the song inside changed to an upbeat, fast-paced song. Karen gasped,

"Jen! It's our song, girl! Let's go!" Karen encouraged, grabbing the pink haired girl and dragging her back inside.

Kori watched them go and sighed in apparent relief. She looked up and noticed Rachel staring at her intently,

"Kori, you're my best friend... You can tell me... Do you have feelings for Dick?" Rachel questioned, quietly,

Kori nodded but held a sad expression upon her face,

"Shouldn't you be happy about that?" Rachel asked,

"But... It is wrong. Surely I should not feel this way when Xavier is still my boyfriend..."

"Kori... You can't help how you feel. If you have stronger feelings for Dick than Xavier then I think you know what to do..."

Kori opened her mouth to reply to Rachel but Dick suddenly wandered out towards them.

"Hey girls," He greeted, passing Kori her drink.

"Thank you," Kori said, smiling up at him. Rachel slowly stood up, sensing that they should have some time alone together,

"I better go and check that Gar hasn't passed out or something," Rachel groaned, causing Dick to chuckle. She trudged back inside to follow up on her statement.

Kori and Dick shared a glance and they both caved into smiling sweetly at each other. Kori briefly looked up at the sky but immediately took a second glance,

"Oh! The stars... They are so bright tonight!" Kori gasped, causing Dick to look up too,

"I know... It's usually hard to see the stars because of living in the city." He informed her,

"They are beautiful..."

"I like looking for the constellations,"

"What are constellations?"

"You don't know what constellations are?"

Kori shook her head,

"They're clusters of stars that form certain shapes. Like... 3 stars in a line would signify orion's belt."

"Oh!" Kori breathed, clapping her hands, "How interesting! Are there others?"

Dick nodded and stared up at the night sky in search of more constellations,

"Okay, look up there. That's the constellation of a swan. See those stars crossing over those ones?" He explained,

"I do not see it..." Kori told him.

Dick walked over to her and stood behind her. He lowered himself so that his face was level with her left shoulder. He touched her arm and guided her so that she could see it.

However, Kori had completely stopped listening to him. His face was so close to hers and she felt the adrenaline electrify her veins. She gulped as her heart raced within her chest.

She gazed at his face while he continued explaining constellations. She couldn't deny feelings for him anymore.

Dick turned to her and smiled softly. Kori breathed unevenly before impulsively grabbing his chin and searing her lips to his. She clearly caught Dick off guard as he made a noise of shock the moment that their lips touched.

Feeling ashamed, Kori broke the kiss and she cast her eyes downwards. She thought Dick was going to say things against her actions... But he didn't.

Kori suddenly felt a gentle hand cup her cheek. Dick turned her face towards his and pressed his lips against hers. Kori made an 'eep' noise initially but quickly fell into the bliss that was their kiss. Kori let her eyes flutter shut as gave into something she truly wanted.

The rain was heavy as it poured over the streets of Gotham. The party had ended approximately an hour ago and Kori trudged up the stairs of the apartment block she was in as the time came close to 2:30am.

Her heart was racing. As soon as she and Dick had ended their kiss, Kori had got to her feet and had begun pacing. It instantly set in that she had been unfaithful to Xavier. It didn't matter how little the offense; she had still betrayed Xavier by kissing someone else. Although Dick had tried to reason with her and had tried to discourage her from leaving the party, she left anyway.

Now, Kori felt terrible. She was messing everything up. She knew that she left Dick wondering what was going to happen with them and she realised that was wrong because he didn't deserve to have his head messed with. But, Kori also realised that she couldn't keep her disloyalty from Xavier. She had to tell him what she had done.

Kori inhaled a shaky breath as she stood outside Xavier's front door. Pushing herself to continue, she knocked lightly on the door.

Xavier opened the door and smiled at her. He leaned forward and hugged her body close to his own.

"Hey. Come in," He said, allowing her to pass him.

Kori was silent as she ambled inside of his apartment and took a seat on his sofa. He followed in after her and took a seat beside her,

"You look great by the way. Were you out tonight?" He wondered,

Kori shrugged nonchalantly and touched her arm, "I was at a party..." She said, quietly,

"Are you okay? You seem a little off tonight..."

Kori shut her eyes tightly and exhaled the breath she had been holding since she knocked on his door, "I kissed Richard." She admitted.

Xavier stiffened and the air felt suddenly thicker, "The neighbour guy?" He asked, his tone icy,

"Yes..."

"You told me that you didn't have feelings for him!"

"I was conflicted! I... I did not want to... But... I do."

Xavier stilled for a moment before he got up and grabbed his car keys and headed for the front door. Kori's eyes widened and her heart rate began to go sky high,

"Xavier? Xavier! What are you doing!?" Kori squealed,

"I'm gonna go beat the crap out of him, obviously." He replied, deadly serious.

"What!? You cannot do that!"

"He made out with my girlfriend so don't you dare try to fucking tell me what I can't do."

They reached the car park and Kori was getting more and more worked up. There were tears streaming down her cheeks as she attempted to plead with him.

Xavier unlocked his car and slid into the driver's seat. Kori immediately ran around the other side of the car and got in to try and further convince him not to do anything to Dick.

"Please Xavier! It was a mistake! It was never supposed to happen-"

"But it did happen, didn't it, Kori!?"

Kori remained silent as Xavier pushed his foot down on the accelerator.

Dick sighed as he leaned back into his sofa. He was still in his clothes from the party as he simply sat and replayed his kiss with Kori in his mind. It was so amazing. It was heated yet innocent too.

Suddenly, the ebony haired boy heard shouting and screaming from the stairs and he got up. He knew exactly who it was and he had a pretty good idea of what had happened. Kori must have felt guilty about the kiss and gone to tell Xavier who apparently didn't react well. Dick didn't care; if he had to physically fight for Kori then he would.

Dick wandered to the front door and opened it and leaned against the door frame with his arms folded over his chest.

Xavier appeared at the top of the stairs and immediately scowled at Dick. Kori followed shortly and hiccupped as she continued to cry quietly. Xavier slowly moved closer towards Dick who made no move at all.

"You must be the asshole Kori has told me about," Xavier growled,

"I don't know about that because the only asshole I see is standing right in front of me." Dick returned, his voice evenly matching Xavier's.

"Say that again, you bastard," Xavier hissed, getting in his face,

Dick gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. Kori hurried to stand between them. She placed a hand on both of their shoulders and pushed them away from one another.

"Stop it! Please!" She cried. She sighed and turned to Dick, "Please... Richard, go inside. I shall handle this."

Dick opened his mouth to protest against her request but a pleading expression from Kori made him obey her wishes. He threw a cold glare in Xavier's direction before he went back inside and left the door on the latch.

"Kori, how could you-" Xavier was cut off as Kori sighed,

"Xavier... I am going to be honest with you. I have wanted to do the breaking up with you for a long time now." Kori admitted,

"What? Why? It's because of him, isn't it!?"

"No! I wanted to do the breaking up since before I even met Richard!"

"But... We're good together, Kor!"

Kori dragged a hand through her long red locks and coughed out a bitter laugh, "I cannot keep doing this with you!" Kori screamed, "We argue every minute of every day! How is that anything close to a relationship that works!? This does not work anymore and I cannot keep putting myself through this... We must separate, Xavier... Please... We do not help each other..."

Xavier remained emotionless for a short time before he slowly nodded his head,

"Okay Kori... If that's what you want. We'll break up."

"Thank you for understanding, Xavier and... I am sorry..."

Xavier nodded to her and turned to leave at the same time as Dick opened his door again. The two shared a cold glare before Xavier left the building.

Dick leaned against the door frame and looked down at Kori,

"So... What happened?" He queried, hopeful,

"We are broken up..." Kori informed him, flashing him a smile. Dick smirked and stood up straight. He placed his hands on her waist and brought her closer to him,

"So... Does that mean..." He trailed off as their faces inched closer. Kori sealed the kiss and placed her arms around his neck. Dick tightened his grip on Kori's waist as they began to move backwards into Dick's apartment with Kori kicking the door shut on the way in...


	12. Chapter 12

The vivid rays of sunlight seeped through the thin cracks in the curtains and lit up the face of a slumbering Kori. Her red hair became illuminated and her skin glowed with an intense radiance. She began to wake up and broke into a big smile as she stretched her arms out above her head.

She sighed in content as she allowed her eyes to flutter open. She glanced at her surroundings and was thankful that the previous night had not been a dream. There was a persistent warm and fluffy feeling within Kori's stomach that she was acutely aware of. She had almost forgotten what it was like to be in the early stages of love.

Suddenly, Kori felt two soft yet toned arms encircle her waist beneath the covers. She smirked as Dick snuggled up closer to her and rested his chin on her shoulder. He began leaving small kisses over her neck and shoulder, causing Kori to giggle.

Dick sighed, "Not that I want you to leave but you have work in half an hour, Kor."

Kori's eyes widened and she hissed a curse in her own language. She threw back the covers and hurried to her feet but froze immediately after. She blushed a deep red and squealed as she realised she was completely naked. With an embarrassed groan, she grabbed the blanket at the end of Dick's bed and wrapped it around her body.

Dick grinned and snuggled more beneath the sheets whilst closing his eyes. He couldn't deny that he enjoyed watching his new girlfriend freak out about being naked; not that it really mattered. Dick had seen everything the night before and had been far from disappointed.

Kori ran around Dick's apartment collecting her articles of clothing. She was in and out of the bathroom in the space of two minutes and her record breaking speed caused Dick to reopen his eyes.

She picked up her bag and muttered a lot about finding her keys and having to change into her uniform.

Dick smirked. He was in a state of bliss about finally getting together with Kori. He had literally fallen for the red headed angel the minute she hauled her boxes up the stairs.

He noticed Kori was rushing towards his front door, "You're leaving already?" Dick asked, confused due to her still having some time.

"I need to change into my uniform!" Kori called as she headed out the door.

A couple of minutes passed and Kori dashed back into Dick's apartment. She glanced around to make sure that she had everything she would need.

"Okay. I must go," Kori informed Dick.

She wandered over to him and pecked his lips quickly. She turned to pull away and leave but Dick grabbed her arm and pulled her down beneath the covers.

"Richard!" She giggled. She attempted to be serious but she ultimately failed.

"I don't want you to go. Can't you call in sick or something?" He suggested, stroking her arm.

"Not really. I will see you later." Kori reassured him, getting up once more. She dusted her uniform and kissed Dick briefly again. With that, she left for her work shift at JaVaVu.

Kori sighed as she pulled her coat around her. She was bracing herself for the bitter night time wind. It had been an extremely long day. She had accepted a double shift in order to get double her usual wages. She knew it was worth it but she always felt regretful while  _doing_  the double shift.

She pressed a hand against the door and turned to Rachel with a smile,

"Goodnight, Rachel," She stated,

Rachel looked up from the table she was cleaning with a smirk, "Night, Kor. Say hi to Dick for me," She teased, causing Kori to giggle.

Kori opened the door and slid out to begin her journey home.

As she walked, she noticed how many cars were on the street. She wasn't at all surprised. It was a Saturday night and there were always people out and about. Suddenly, an ambulance zoomed down the street whilst all the cars turned so it had more space to move. The sirens were blaring along with the lights. Kori cringed and covered her ears. They were always so ear-splitting especially when they were close by.

Kori sighed. She looked up in hopes of being able to spot more stars and constellations in the sky but of course she could not. The large amounts of cars were just a factor on what made the city such an irritating place to live. Dick was right about the city interfering with seeing beautiful things such as the stars.

One day, Kori hoped to get out of the city completely. She loved how lively the city could be but she hated it too. It was a conflict that continuously rolled around in Kori's mind.

Kori smiled as she thought of Dick. She was reaching closer to the apartment block and she was dying to relax with Dick on the sofa with a pizza and a good movie. Spending time with him was what had primarily got her through her day of work.

Kori continued walking and finally had her building in sight but there was something wrong. She squinted and could just make out flashing lights outside of the building. Her heart dropped into her stomach as she soon realised that the ambulance that had gone past her earlier was now outside of her apartment block. She gulped and quickened her walking speed.

As she got closer, Kori could also make out two police cars. Her heart began thumping hard within her ribcage. She prayed that the commotion had nothing to do with Dick but she couldn't seem to convince herself of that no matter what.

She broke into a sprint towards the building.

As she arrived on the premises, Kori felt alone and isolated. There were officers and paramedics rushing around her and she still had no idea as to what was going on. She felt tears prick her eyes as she was unable to shake the idea that something had happened to Dick.

"Excuse me? Hello? What has happened?" Kori questioned, reaching out to the people around her,

"Excuse me, miss." An officer said, passing her.

Kori bit her lip and her eyes shifted frantically.

Suddenly, Kori eyed an all too familiar face and she felt a whirlwind of emotions explode inside of her. She looked past an officer and saw Xavier being restrained against the hard cold ground whilst being handcuffed. She craned her neck to hear the accusation,

"Xavier Jones, I am arresting you for the attempted murder of Richard Grayson." The officer informed him.

Kori gasped and stumbled back into another officer who held her by the shoulders,

"Excuse me, Miss," He said, turning to walk on. Kori stopped him by grasping his arm,

"Please... Is Richard alright?" She queried, concern evident in her eyes,

"Miss, I'm not authorised to-"

"Please! He is my boyfriend!"

The officer bit his lip, "He has been admitted to Gotham General with a bullet wound although, I am afraid I don't know where he got hit,"

Kori released the officer and he returned to rushing around, checking on updates in connection to the situation at hand.

Hot tears dripped down Kori's soft cheeks as her anxiety over Dick's wellbeing, worsened. Her concern and sadness suddenly turned to fury. She gritted her teeth and glared at Xavier who was now on his feet.

Kori quickly marched up to Xavier and without warning; she slapped him hard across the face. It happened in a blur of motion and Kori found herself screaming while an officer restrained her,

"What have you done, you monster!?" She shrieked,

"He deserved to get shot! He stole you away from me, Kor! I had no choice! You're mine. Don't you see? I refuse to even consider you with anyone else!" Xavier shouted before giving in to a maniacal laugh.

Kori's eyes widened and she slowly backed away as she witnessed the true state of her ex-boyfriend. She was horrified. She always knew Xavier was a little unhinged but she never imagined him capable of such things. She turned away, disgusted with her former boyfriend.

She felt sick as her wailing cries intensified. An officer placed a gentle hand against her shoulder,

"Miss... Would you like to be taken to the hospital to see Mr Grayson?" She asked.

Kori nodded without a second thought. She needed him to be okay.  _'Please be okay, Richard.'_  She begged...


	13. Chapter 13

Kori practically fell out of the police car as she rushed in through the main doors of Gotham General. She needed to find Dick and she would do whatever it took. She would look on every single floor and room of the hospital if she had too.

She sprinted up to the front desk and placed her palms flat on the desk as she struggled to regain her breath. The receptionist stared at her for a long moment before raising an eyebrow at her,

"Miss... Can I help you with something?" The receptionist asked,

"I need to know where Mr Grayson is. He was brought in with a... Bullet wound, I believe?" Kori informed her, politely,

"I'm sorry Miss, but you'll have to wait. Only family can go up and see him."

"Please! I need to know if-"

"Miss... I will not tell you again. Please take a seat and wait."

Kori gritted her teeth and narrowed her eyes at the receptionist in an intimidating manner. Her eyes held a blazing fiery heat that made the receptionist nervous. Kori was clearly not in the mood to mess around.

"Listen to me, you stupid woman. He is my boyfriend and I need to see if he is alright. Now, I am going to see him whether you cooperate or not. Believe me, with the way I am feeling right now, I am not afraid to physically throw you through that glass window so I advise you to tell me where he is! NOW!" Kori threatened, her expression and confidence never wavering.

The receptionist visibly shook as she clicked through the records on the computer. She gulped, "He... He's in r-room 4 on the s-second floor..." She stammered,

"Thank you." Kori stated, her voice low.

Kori hurried up the stairs to the second floor. She speedily checked the room numbers and bit her lip in concentration. She found room 4 and bolted through the door.  
She froze on the spot and relief began to suffocate her.

In front of her, Dick sat upon the edge of his hospital bed without a shirt. The nurse neatly finished wrapping his upper arm up in bandages before taking her leave. Dick looked up and saw Kori walk over to him.

He smiled meekly as she threw her coat and her bag on the chair beside the bed,

"Hey Ko-" Dick was cut off by Kori.

She immediately threw her arms around his neck tightly. She buried her face in his shoulder before frantically kissing his cheek, jaw and chin. She pulled back, breathing unevenly and cupped his face in her hands,

"Ar-Are you al-alright?" She hiccupped, tears falling freely from her clouded green eyes,

Dick gently stroked her cheek to erase her tears. He leaned forward and tenderly kissed her for a moment, "Shh... It's okay... I'm alright. The bullet grazed my arm. It needed light stitching and my arm will hurt for a couple days; that's all. They just needed to bring me in so they could be sure there was no serious damage." He whispered,

Kori swallowed the lump in her throat, "Do you promise?" She said, barely loud enough for Dick to hear her,

"I promise, Kori." He vowed.

Dick pulled her to him and wrapped his good arm around her in an affectionate motion. He felt her shoulders slump a little as she began to relax.

Kori delicately ran her fingertips over his bandaged arm, causing him to wince slightly. She lowered her head and Dick was acutely aware that she was still crying.

"Hey..." He hushed, "What's up? Everything's okay, Kori..."

Kori shook her head, "No it is not... All the fault is mine... Xavier shot you because of me... I am so sorry..." She sniffled,

Dick hooked his index finger beneath her chin and forced her to look at him,

"Stop that. It isn't your fault. It could never be your fault that your ex is bat crazy." Dick told her, adding humour to let her know that he was fine. Kori giggled a little and wiped her eyes with the back of her sleeve.

"I had no idea that he was capable of such things..."

"Forget about it... Now, I have a fun story to tell people when they ask about the scar!"

Kori raised an eyebrow at him and shook her head in disbelief. She rested her forehead against Dick's and they shared a loving and lingering kiss.

Dick's apartment was pitch black when they got back that night. Kori patted the wall and found the light switch. She flipped the switch and turned to Dick who was hobbling in through the door whilst shrugging his arm in the sling, apparently trying to make it more comfortable.

Kori was at his side instantly. She tugged the sling and readjusted his arm so that it sat within the fabric more comfortably for him. She had a worried expression throughout the entire night and that caused Dick anxiety. He placed his hand over Kori's busy ones, signalling for her to stop.

"Kor, really I'm fine." He told her.

She watched him as he dropped his jacket over the back of the sofa and sat down, sighing as he completed his actions. Kori cast her eyes downwards, feeling as though she had done wrong. She clasped her hands in front of her and kept a slight distance from Dick,

"Apologies... I simply wish to make sure that is true..." She told him, quietly.

Dick furrowed his eyebrows and stretched out his right hand to her. She gulped and accepted it. He gently brushed his thumb against her knuckles,

"I'm sorry... I just don't want you to worry too much. When you worry, I worry." He informed her.

Kori nodded but glanced at the clock, "You are due for your dose of painkillers now, Richard," She acknowledged. She turned and wandered into the kitchen to get a glass of water for him. She placed the glass of water on the table in front of him and rummaged through her purse to find his box of tablets.

Whilst she sorted out his pills, Dick ogled her form as she was bending over the table. He smirked,

"Surely if you're going to take care of me, you should have a nurse outfit?" He teased.

Kori smiled and rolled her eyes, "I see getting shot in the arm has not wavered the way in which you think." She admitted,

"Never." Dick chuckled,

Kori pointed to the pills without saying a word and Dick groaned but obeyed her silent orders. Dick picked up two tablets and gulped them down with the aid of water.

Kori nodded in response to his cooperation. She began to clear away the packaging of the pills and began to generally fuss over clearing the table.

Dick exaggerated rolling his eyes and he groaned. He used his good arm to reach up and grab the back of the skirt of her uniform dress. He pulled her down onto his lap and rested his right hand on her bare thigh.

He sighed, "Kori, you'll make me feel better by just cuddling with me and watching TV. Okay?"

"Okay." Kori answered, slowly.

After a brief moment of calmness and absolute relaxation, Kori sat up and leaned away from Dick. He grunted at her inability to stay still, "Kor, what did I just-" He was cut off,

Kori had a blanket in hand and spread it over them, "What is the cuddling without a blanket?" She quizzed, causing Dick to smirk.

Kori smoothed out the blanket upon their laps and rested her head against his shoulder, feeling an ease spread through her...


	14. Chapter 14

The following afternoon was warm yet breezy which was rare considering it was the tail end of winter. Kori was longing to go out for her break. She had been denied it during the middle of the day as JaVaVu encountered rush hour.

However, now that the shop only had a couple of customers residing within it, Kori was hopeful about going for her break soon.

Suddenly, Kori turned at the sound of the shop door opening. Dick wandered in with his arm in a sling and flashed her his signature lopsided grin. She was happy to see him but she was concerned about him being out.

He took a seat on a stool at the counter and leaned over it to kiss Kori tenderly upon the lips.

"Afternoon, gorgeous," He greeted her, sitting back,

"Richard. I told you that you should rest and only leave your apartment if it was an emergency," Kori softly scolded him,

"This is an emergency. I missed you and I wanted to hang out with you on your break." Dick explained, smiling sheepishly.

Kori caved into smirking at his reason, "You are very sweet, Richard,"

Dick shrugged, "I try."

Rachel exhaled noisily as she walked around the counter to grab a fresh cloth from beneath the counter, "How's the arm, Dick?" She queried,

"Oh hey Rae... It's a little better... So, Kori told you about it, huh?" Dick responded, playing with Kori's slender fingers as he spoke,

"Yup," She nodded, "I always knew there was something psychotic about Xavier. Bad choice Kori, bad choice."

Dick and Kori laughed in unison as Rachel took her leave to go and clean tables. Dick held Kori's hand in his, causing her to glance at him,

"Ready to go?" He checked, earning an expressive nod from Kori.

Kori smiled as she noted birds chirping away in their nest in the tree above her head. She and Dick continued to slowly stroll, hand in hand, through the park across the street from JaVaVu. Kori enjoyed the feeling of the light, cool breeze against her face in contrast with the warmth from holding hands with Dick.

Finally, Dick gently tugged Kori over to a black, wooden bench that was beneath a large oak tree that held a lifeless aura due to the bleak season. He took a seat on the bench and pulled Kori down onto his lap. She giggled and did her best to avoid touching his wounded arm.

"So... I actually do have a question for you," Dick admitted, playing with the ends of Kori's hair,

Kori raised an eyebrow and smirked, "Go ahead," She replied, slowly,

"I know that we're already going out but we never went on a first date... So I was wondering... If you felt like going out on a date with me tonight... If you're not too tired from work that is,"

Kori cupped his face and pecked his lips, "Of course... I would love to."

"Awesome,"

Dick grinned and tightened his arms around her as he lifted his head up to crush her lips with his own. He idly drew patterns on her thigh while the attack on her cupid bow lips continued. However, moving his arm soon proved that his wound had not fully healed as he felt sudden pain. He immediately broke the kiss,

"Ow! Damn it... Stupid arm." He complained,

"Apologies, Richard." Kori commented,

"It's not your fault, Kor. I hope it heals soon. I hate the lack of ability I have at the moment."

"Do you wish for me to go and retrieve painkillers for you?"

Dick shook his head, "Ignore it. Kissing makes up for the pain; believe me."

Kori giggled and reattached her lips to his and wrapped her arms around his neck, lovingly. He wasn't able to wrap his left arm around her so she decided she would take care of it for him...


	15. Chapter 15

Dick cleared his throat and adjusted his tie as he stood outside of Kori's front door. He almost wanted to laugh. Here they were about to go on their first date when they had already been dating for nearly a week. As that fact set into his mind, Dick smiled absentmindedly. He couldn't believe that he and Kori were actually together. He had wanted to date her since he first met her and now that he was labelled as her boyfriend caused him to be ecstatic.

He shook his head and lifted his fist up to Kori's door and lightly tapped it. He straightened up in an attempt to look suave and sophisticated. He didn't always wear suits on dates but he was taking Kori out of the city to a very high-class restaurant. Fancy was a necessity.

After a moment, the door opened to reveal Kori. Dick's mouth fell open as her appearance literally took his breath away. She wore a dark purple dress that had a sweetheart cut around her assets to elegantly highlight them without causing her to seem trashy. The dress was long at the back and reached the floor whilst the front was short and above Kori's knees, revealing her long slim legs. Upon her feet, she wore simple black heels that made her nearly as tall as Dick. Her appearance was finished off with a delicate silver chain that hung around her neck with a matching bracelet that dangled around her wrist. Finally, her hair was straightened and pulled into a high ponytail whilst her bangs and side pieces of hair remained down.

Kori twirled around for him which caused him to notice the corset style back to her dress. She bit her lip with concern, "Am I... Overdressed?" Kori feared,

"It's perfect for where we're going. I promise." Dick answered,

Kori nodded and stepped closer to him. She softly rested a hand on his chest and glanced up at him, "You look very handsome," She whispered,

"You look amazing," He returned. Kori smirked as Dick slipped his hands onto her waist and pulled her hips closer to his, "In fact... Can't we just skip dinner?"

He lowered his face closer to hers and began to pepper kisses over her bare neck and shoulder. Kori broke into a small giggle and patted his shoulder,

"Come along or we will be late, Richard," Kori chirped, taking his hand in hers. She pulled him along as they wandered down the stairs.

Kori couldn't help but stare around the building they had entered. She linked her arm with Dick's as they continued to walk through the main hallway, leading up to the maître d behind the podium. Kori was fascinated by just the hallway they walked through. It had white walls with columns wrapped in fairy lights and dark red carpet that helped to define the romantic atmosphere.

Once they had reached the front, Kori fell even further into fascination. She didn't hear Dick as he told the maître d his name for their reservations.

The inside of the restaurant was astounding. The ceiling was completely covered in mirrors with grand, crystal chandeliers hanging in five different spots. The walls were white like within the hallway but there were swirls of dark red upon the walls that matched the carpet. The tables were set out in a sophisticated manner and there were candles that stood in the middle of them that lit the surrounding area nicely. In the corner, there was a large stage that was occupied by a string quartet that was creating soft, beautiful music pieces for people dining in the restaurant.

Dick tugged on Kori's arm which brought her out of her deep trance. He smiled down at her as they followed the host to their table. The host bowed and left quickly so that Dick and Kori could have some privacy.

They both took a seat and pulled themselves closer to the table.

"This place is unbelievable... I believe I feel underdressed..." Kori breathed, still glancing around the room.

"I know. The first time I came here, I don't think I paid much attention to what was being said because I couldn't get over how grand the place looks." Dick chuckled.

He passed Kori a menu and they both began to scan their eyes over the list of food choices.

Kori exhaled a breath as she finished eating her meal. She carefully dabbed at her mouth and sat back in her chair.

"That was probably the best thing I have ever consumed..." Kori admitted, making Dick chuckle.

The two of them had been in the restaurant for approximately 40 minutes and had covered lots of different conversational topics. They talked about their friends for a while and how well they all got along with each other. They talked about Kori more and her origin of being from the tropical city of Tameran in the Caribbean. They also ended up talking more about Kori's family life and why she couldn't stand living among her family any longer.

Dick felt that it seemed only right to tell her the truth behind his birth parents. He trusted her with his life so he definitely trusted her with knowing such a personal thing about him.

"Kor?" Dick began,

"Yes?" She answered,

"I feel like I can tell you things... I feel like I can tell you about my parents..."

"You do not have to, Richard. It is very personal to you. I would understand..."

"No, I want to."

Kori nodded as a signal for him to begin his story,

"Well... You'll probably find this part hilarious..." He paused, "I was born into the circus. My family were trapeze artists. Acrobatics is in my blood,"

"You were part of the circus?"

"Yup. Told you it was funny."

"I cannot imagine it."

"Me neither now... It was such a long time ago... Anyways, my parents were known for being a trapeze act that worked without a safety net. One afternoon, this guy called Tony Zucco came in during practice... He was trying to demand protection money from the ringmaster but he refused. My family's trapeze act was the most popular act so... On our opening night in Gotham, he uh... He loosened the wires that we used to move around with... I was about to jump off the platform when the wires snapped... My parents fell and nothing could be done to save them..."

Kori had her hand over her mouth for the majority of his storytelling and she had tears falling from her eyes. She covered his hand with her own and stroked his knuckles with her thumb,

"Oh Richard..." She breathed, "I am so sorry... That must have been horrific..."

"I was young but... It's not something you easily forget" He told her, quirking a self assuring smile. Kori bit her lip and shuffled her chair around so she sat directly beside him. She ran her hands around his chest and shoulders and slowly brought him into an embrace. Dick returned it with the use of his right arm. His left arm may have been out of the sling but it was still bandaged beneath his clothes and still hurt like hell.

They stayed quiet for a couple of minutes while Kori softly ran her fingers through Dick's hair. He made a noise of enjoyment and couldn't help but smile a little,

"You know, that's really soothing..." Dick whispered, closing his eyes to focus on the feeling more.

"I am glad I can oblige you in being comfortable, Richard." She giggled.

Dick reluctantly sat up and gazed into her eyes and Kori thought he was going to ask her something very serious,

"What desert should we get?" He questioned.

Kori blinked a few times before she burst out laughing. She shook her head and smiled at him, "You can choose... Shall we simply share?" She suggested,

"Sure," He replied, picking up the menu, "Ooh! Let's get the chocolate fudge cake, Kor!"

Kori giggled at his excitement for the desert and gently stroked his arm. She felt touched that he had opened up to her about his parents deaths. She knew this relationship was going to be very different from her previous one. After only a few days of being in a relationship with him, she could already tell that they were bound to last...


	16. Epilogue

**5 years later...**

Kori furrowed her eyebrows as she gave up trying to lift a heavy box. She decided to simply push the box along the sleek, smooth wood flooring. She groaned as she was having slight difficulty due to her apparent condition.

Dick wandered in with a box full of DVD's and noticed Kori bent over and pushing the box along. His eyes widened and he dropped the box with a thud. He proceeded to run over to her,

"Kor, What're you doing?" He quizzed.

Kori blew her hair out of her eyes and glanced up at him, "Richard, what does it look like I am doing? I am moving boxes." She explained,

Dick bit his lip in concern and walked up to her. He placed a soft hand against her back and the other on her waist, coaxing her to stand up straight.

"Take it easy, Kor... Please?" He requested.

Kori sighed but stood up nevertheless which revealed her large stomach. She was now approximately 5 months pregnant and she was beginning to find it strange how she harboured so much weight in her stomach area due to their baby residing there.

She had no problems with Dick and his concerns. Since the day she had told him that she was with child, he had been a big ball of fear. She knew that he was being considerate but she hated not being able to do anything.

Dick smiled at her baby bump and gently lifted her shirt up a little. He placed his hands on her stomach and brushed his thumb attentively over her skin. Kori sighed and placed her hand on her hip,

"Richard, I do not wish to be useless in moving into our new home." Kori told him.

Dick rubbed her stomach tenderly and kissed her nose, "You'll be useful to me if you drink some zorkaberry tea and rest, Kor."

Kori rolled her eyes and exhaled noisily. She folded her arms over her chest to show that she wasn't happy about doing that. Dick tilted his head and placed his hands on her waist,

"Don't pout like that, Kor... I just want you to be careful. You  _are_  carrying my child, after all." He paused and sighed, "I just want everything to go okay."

Kori softened and smiled at his consideration for her and the baby.

"Fine... I will stop helping but may I stay around while you move boxes?"

"Won't you get bored?"

"No... Strangely enough, I enjoy talking to my husband,"

Dick chuckled and kissed her cheek as he passed her to retrieve more boxes from the moving truck.

Kori leaned against the wall and glanced around the house. She couldn't believe how huge it was.

The walls were an off white colour which contrasted well with the dark chocolate shading of the wooden floors. There was a set of dark wooden sliding doors on each side of the hallway. One set of doors led into the main room and the other set of doors led into the kitchen which also joined onto a dining room. There was a double staircase which led off to the East and West wings of the house. At the end of the hallway was an open area lounge which overlooked the smooth sanded beach and calm sea.

Kori sighed in content as Dick walked back in with a lamp in one hand and a electric fan in the other. He placed them down and turned to Kori,

"What is it?" He asked,

"When we agreed to purchase a bigger house, I did not think it would be  _this_  big." She answered,

Dick shrugged, "That's what happens when you let me choose the house,"

Kori giggled but stopped suddenly and gasped. She grabbed the staircase railing to maintain her balance. Dick gulped and dropped the box of towels he was holding. He ran over to her and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Whoa... What is it? What's wrong?" Dick fretted,

Kori shook her head and broke out into an incandescent smile, "The baby... The baby just kicked... It has not yet done that!" She exclaimed.

Dick mirrored her smile, "Can I feel?" He requested,

"Of course," Kori agreed.

Dick carefully placed his hand on Kori's stomach and the baby kicked almost immediately. Dick made an 'o' shape with his mouth and glanced at Kori with pure excitement,

"Oh my god... That's so strange but so amazing..." He admitted in a hushed tone,

"The baby must be able to sense its' father," Kori assumed. Dick gazed into her deep green eyes and smiled. He softly held her waist and kissed her lips tenderly,

"I love you, Kori." He told her, never breaking eye contact,

"I love you also, Richard," She replied, leaning forward to hug him.

Dick could never truly express his deep-rooted happiness for the day that Kori came into his life. He still vividly remembered the day that she moved in beside him. He especially remembered the singular moment when she blew her hair out of her face and sweetly smiled at him. He  _knew_  she was going to be a memorable neighbour...


End file.
